Self-Management Behavioral Contract

Self-Management Behavioral Contract

Most people find frustration because of the lack of time they acquire to accomplish their goals. Time management is about discipline and execution. Time is a resource that no one can buy, sell, share with others, take from others, receive more of, or have less of. Every day has the same amount of time, 24 hours. What a person does with time makes a difference. The people who make the most of their time may apply different techniques and systems, but they have one thing in common. They have a vision of how they spend their time, a vision that includes a clear sense of priorities. They know what they want to do with their time. The subject of this paper is to describe the goal of managing time better, assess target behaviors to increase or decrease, and to provide a monitoring system to track progress.

Time Management

One most useful stress reduction skills a person can learn is effective time management. A person may begin by making a list of work, school, family, and leisure activities that a person performs in a day. A person should analyze the list to sort the activities according to priority. This will place the high priority activities at the top for a person to accomplish his or her goals. To allocate and use time well, a person may decide to eliminate some activities from the daily schedule, such as watching television, chatting online, or talking on the phone. After analyzing and ranking activities, a person must determine the amount of time he or she needs to carry out the activities. Allow more time to complete the high priority tasks than those of lesser importance. A person should perform the high priority tasks first. Putting off an important task known as procrastination is a result from fear, fear of failure, or doing less than a perfect job (Alters & Schiff, 2011). If the task appears overwhelming, he or she should break it into smaller jobs to check off as he or she completes them.

To manage time, a person should use a calendar or computer to record when papers are due, appointments, and examinations. A student can make a daily list of things to do, especially on busy days. A mother who is also a student and full- time employee must allow some time for unexpected situations. She will need time to relax, eat, exercise, socialize, and sleep. Allowing seven to eight hours of rest each night is critical for staying alert. A mom who works and has family responsibilities while attending school must plan her time carefully. Moms who balance the time that they spend performing task responsibilities while engaging in pleasurable activities may improve their performance and feel a sense of accomplishment. A mom coping with daily stressors may keep a written record of personal events, thoughts, and feelings. Entering thoughts in a journal regularly can help focus on emotional responses to situations (Alters &