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![Portrait picture of Carol Kiriakos]()
Carol Kiriakos
Teaching and Learning Officer
Academic Service
Background
Are you struggling with organizing your days, making progress, following your plans, finding a balance between PhD work and other aspects of life?
In this course we adopt a different approach to time-management. The premise of this course is that time-management does not begin with the calendar, but with finding meaning. We will develop awareness and reflective capacities related to your time use, organization of daily life, and creating and maintaining work-life balance.
The method in this course is soft, but powerful: we will do reflective exercises and discussion based on poetry therapy and creative writing. No specific skills are needed, but you are expected to come with an open mind and a willingness to work on your challenges on a personal level.
The course is suitable for you, for instance, if you:
- struggle with time use and planning
- fail to meet deadlines
- have a constant feeling of being behind
- suffer from guilt related to not performing
- are unsure of what activities to prioritize
- have difficulties saying no to things
How this course will work
This course is held online via Zoom. A total of 6 hours is divided into two 3-hour sessions (with small breaks in each). The meetings consist of brief introductory talks on issues related to time use and time awareness, reflective written exercises based on literary materials, and group discussion.
No preparation is needed, but you are expected to be fully present and in a private space during the meetings, with all distractions eliminated (no multitasking, or other apps open).
Please note that this is not a tool- or calendar-based approach to time management. Instead, you will develop access to the fundamental issues related to time use on the individual level.
What you will learn
You will learn to examine your personal foundations for time use and planning, and identify first concrete step(s) in organizing your days and your life differently. On a more general level, this course will help strengthen your self-reflective and self-management capacities.