Another Podcast

Subscribe to Ruth Klein's Time Management Secrets on iTunes. Her advice on Time Management is much more abstract than others. Klein speaks about how people can save time through attitude and emotions. I'm not usually a big fan of emotional advice, but it could be worth a listen!

Time Management Podcasts

iTunes allows users to subscribe to many free podcasts. Download time manage coach Dave Durand's podcast for some great tips. His latest podcast features audio from a live presentation he gave titled "Time Bomb." Download it on your iPod so you can listen to his tips on-the-go.

Managing the Holidays

It may be the most wonderful time of the year but it's also the busiest. This great article on Boston.com gives a detailed breakdown of what to do each week leading up to Christmas in order to help manage the holidays better. My typical strategy is to get to the mall on Christmas Eve to start and finish my holiday shopping. Maybe this year I can use these steps instead.

Assignment #5

The following interview is a question and answer with fellow student Maggie Kowalski. Maggie is a full-time Northeastern student who also works at Cask n’ Flagon.

About how many hours a week do you spend doing school related stuff
(class, homework, etc) and how many hours a week do you work?

I spend about 25 hours a week in class or doing schoolwork. On a slow week at work, I might only be there 15 hours. But during the baseball season, and especially when the Sox are home, I put in between 30-35 hours per week.

Do you find it hard to manage your time between class, school and a social life?

Yeah, it can be really hard to find a balance between school, work and having a social life. I know that this semester I saw a lot less of people because of my job. Sometimes it was because I was actually at work, but a lot of times I was just too tired or had to catch up on schoolwork. But when you know you have to make money, you find a way to make it work.

Any tips for time management or organizational strategies that help
you get things done?

The best advice I can give is just prioritize. If there are things that you'd like to (but don't need to) get done for class but you just can't fit it in, just skip it. Do what's important and what needs to get done. If there's time for the rest, great. But if it comes down to spending time with your friends or trying to get some work done early or something, I try to pick my friends. There's only so much you can realistically do, for your classes or for your job.

If you had more free time, what would you spend it doing?

If I had more free time, I'd spend it with my friends. I didn't get to see them as much as I'd like to this semester. And I'd probably try to see my friends at other schools more. It's hard to get a whole weekend away from school/work, so if I had more, I'd try to make more trips out to see people outside of Boston.

Watch Out!

My watch is a permanent fixture on my left wrist. I estimate that I probably look at it an average of 40 times a day to check the time. Seeing as I have worn my current watch so much I was thinking about asking for an upgrade for Christmas. Forbes.com has a great slideshow of the world's best watches. I'm pretty sure I won't see any of these in my stocking this year, but maybe some day!

http://www.forbes.com/2003/12/03/cx_ns_1203guide.html

Fashion on the Run

Sometimes there just isn't enough time to change from your day clothes to your night on the town ensemble. The key is acessorizing your day outfits to make them more dressy. Click on the picture above from the NY Post website to learn how!

Women: schedule in an extra 20 seconds

My classmate (thanks Matt!!) forwarded me this article from Slate.com which concluded that women are discriminated against in coffee shops. An economics professor from Middlebury College and her students set up a study using 8 coffee shops in Boston. The conclusion of the study is that women wait an average of 20 seconds longer than men do to receive their coffee, regardless of how complicated the order is. When all women are working behind the counter, however, women get their coffee much faster.

On my way in to work each night I know that it will take me about 5 minutes to get a coffee from Starbucks as long as there are less than 3 people in line. Waiting an extra 20 seconds actually does make a difference when I am in a rush. I guess when time is a factor
(and when isn't it?) women need to consider the extra waiting time before jumping in line.

http://www.slate.com/id/2177697/nav/tap3/