Pujya Gurudev Pt. Shriram Sharma Acharya’s Kripa-III

Pujya Gurudev Pt. Shriram Sharma Acharya’s Kripa

How to manage time?

(Akhand Jyoti May-June 2009)

The importance and value of life is understood through the management of time. The important question here is how to start effectively managing time? If a person can properly allocate time in his daily routine and steadfastly adhere to it, then amazing results can be achieved. The following are some effective tips for better time management:

·         Create a simple "To Do" list - This simple program will help you identify a few items, the reason for doing them and a timeline for getting them done.

·         Daily/weekly planner - Write down appointments, meetings and tasks on a chronological logbook or chart. If you are more visual, sketch out your schedule first thing in the morning; check what's ahead for the day; always go to sleep knowing you are prepared for tomorrow.

·         Long-term planner - Use a monthly chart so that you can plan ahead. 
Long-term planner will also serve as a reminder to constructively plan time for yourself.

Sometimes a situation arises when there are a lot of tasks to be done and each task has its own significance. In this situation one should always start with most important task first then move on to the next task with a lower priority and so forth. As they say – first things first.

In the book tilted ‘ First things first ’ , Stephen R. Covey et al [1] tell a great story :

“ One day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students. As he stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers he said, "Okay, time for a quiz." He then pulled out a one-gallon, wide-mouthed Mason jar and set it on the table. He produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them one at a time into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, "Is this jar full?" Everyone in the class said, "Yes." Then he said, "Really?"

“ He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing it to work down into the space between the big rocks. Then he asked the group once more, "Is the jar full?" By this time the class was on to him. "Probably not," one of them answered. "Good!" he replied.

“ He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand and started dumping the sand in the jar until it filled the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, "Is this jar full?" No! the class shouted. Once again he said, "Good."

“ Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked at the class and asked, "What is the point of this illustration?"

“ One eager beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things in it!" "No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point."

"The truth this illustration teaches us is that if you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all. What are the 'big rocks' in your life? Your children, your loved ones, your education, your dreams, a worthy cause, teaching others, doing things that you love, your health, your mate? Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you'll never get them in at all. If you sweat about the little stuff then you'll fill your life with little things and you'll never have the real quality time you need to spend on the big, important stuff.”

So, tonight, or in the morning, when you are reflecting on this short story, ask yourself this question: What are the 'big rocks' in my life? Then, put those in your jar first.

Thanks GOD, Thanks Sadguru,

Shiv Sharma