Career Development All-in-One For Dummies

Chapter 1

Organizing Yourself

IN THIS CHAPTER

Understanding planning

Learning the keys to personal organization

Stepping back to evaluate

Time management boils down to a mindset of focusing on your priorities, goals, and objectives for a specific time period — a week, a day, or even an hour. It’s the awareness that you are the one who lays claim to your success with the allotment of time you have for today.

Time management is a set of skills that are learned over time. Skills such as time blocking, single handling, and controlling interruptions don’t provide you with overnight success, nor can you implement or perfect them quickly. They require patience to fail, adjust, proceed, and then repeat the process many times. But by sticking with it, you can accomplish what you need to without too much stress and panic, and maybe have a little extra time left over.

This minibook is about taking control of the time you have in each day. Effective time management requires a little introspection, some good habits and organizational skills, and a handful of logistical and tactical tools. So take some time and get ready to learn how to manage it successfully.

Planning

The planning process ...