SPECIALIST IN ART EDUCATION

Enter the “Unschedule.” The Unschedule is a time management tool developed by Neil Fiore, the author of The Now Habit.

To create your own unschedule, either download from the link in my signature file below, or use a weekly calendar that divides each day into hours.

Here are the rules to make the Unschedule work for you:

· Use a pencil to allow for later changes. · Write down everything you must do in the coming week, NOT including your long-term project.

o Include everything, including meals, sleep, commuting, appointments, and classes.

o Estimate when and how long each will take and mark it in your Unschedule on the hours you most likely will do each activity. o Include recreation, leisure and social activities (crucial!)

• · Look at your Unschedule at this point to become aware of.
• o How much unscheduled time is actually available. o What’s missing from your life – do you have enough time for fun, socializing, and just decompressing?
• · As the week progresses, each time that you work on your Project for at least 30 minutes, mark it in your Unschedule (Fiore insists on 30, but I say 15 is enough.) Remember, you don’t mark it in ahead of time. It works best if you can highlight those time blocks in color. You can then total the amount of time spent working towards your goal at the end of each day and week.
• Why Fill In the Time Blocks AFTER You Work on Your Project?

This accomplishes several things:

• · You avoid being disappointed in yourself (as you may have in the past because you scheduled so much Project time and then let yourself down by not accomplishing the work.)
• · If you have a rebellious streak, you will not having anything to rebel against, since you haven’t filled in the times you MUST work ahead of time. · You will feel good about what you HAVE done as opposed to bad about what you haven’t done.

· You will be reminded to reward yourself by switching to a more enjoyable activity.