How To-130: "How to Develop an Appetite for Reading"

How to Develop an Appetite for Reading

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Reading can be a brilliant way of escaping the world's stresses and can help develop your creativity. As a hobby, reading is inexpensive and can be enjoyed at any time and if you can develop an appetite for reading, it can give you endless hours of enjoyment.

Steps

1. Start small. If you try to begin developing your appetite for reading on a one thousand word tome with many complex issues and a huge cast of characters you may find this stops you wishing to further pursue an appetite for reading. Consider trying to read short story collections at first.
   
2. Ask a reader. Do you have a friend who always has his/her nose in a book and may have recommended several books to you in the past? If you ask someone who knows you and reads a lot what books they'd recommend for you this may be easier than trying to find a suitable book yourself. As an additional bonus you will then have a friend to discuss the book with later.
   
3. Avoid distractions. Some readers can read on a crowded train or even whilst walking down the street but not all can read with distractions and to truly enjoy a book it might be better to read in quiet places where you can give the book your full attention. Consider creating a reading nook for this purpose.
   
4. Analyze your experience. If you don't enjoy the book you were reading then consider why not. Did you feel it went on too long? Try short stories. Was there too much violence? Stay away from horror and crime. Often people do not have an appetite for reading because they feel they dislike reading, when really they have simply read the wrong books for them. If you did like a book see if you like others by the same author or in the same genre.
   
5. Join a book club. Or read the same book as a friend. This will allow you to share your opinions of the book and enjoy it in a different way. It may also give you the chance to try books you wouldn't have otherwise have thought of reading.
   
6. Enjoy! Having an appetite for reading allows you to get a lot more from books and is an easy hobby to keep.

Tips

• Try not to rule anything out. Children's literature can be enjoyed by adults and stereotyped genres such as science fiction are more varied than you might think. Graphic novels often have intriguing plot lines and characters and non-fiction can sometimes be just as entertaining as fiction.
  
• You probably won't enjoy every book you read so don't let yourself be put off gaining an appetite for reading simply because you don't enjoy a few books.

Related wikiHows

• How to Create a Reading Corner
  
• How to Find Free eBooks

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Develop an Appetite for Reading. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-129: "How to Read the Classics"

How to Read the Classics

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Reading classic novels and other works in school is often difficult when working with a time limit. Here are some helpful tips to fully understand the novel/work of literature as well as getting its full meaning.

Steps

1. Read up on the author (where they lived, what happened in their life that is significant, family information, etc.). Make sure to take notes and don't forget to make a working bibliography!
   
2. Obtain a brief overview of the work of literature so you know its main idea. This way, you can spend more time while reading the novel looking for symbolism, imagery, allusions, foreshadowing, etc.
   
3. Read the novel. After each chapter write down key information about the plot, characters, and figurative language. After you're done with the novel of make a list of the characters in detail. Since you have already read it, you should have a great understanding of the characters.
   
4. Look up any literature critiques on the work. By getting someone else's opinion through a critique, you can obtain a better analysis of the book.

Tips

• It helps to keep a notebook for each novel. This way, you can have all of your information for that novel in one place.
  
• Always make a bibliography! When you write down any information from a source, make sure to add that source to your list of bibliographies. In doing this, you will always have a list of the exact sources you visited to refer back to.
  
• Don't forget to reflect on what you've read throughout the work. If you wait until the end, you risk forgetting what happened.
  
• Remember that classics are hard to understand for most people. Just take your time and you will get it! Good luck!
  
• Circle words you don't understand and look them up in a dictionary. Even if you believe you know the definition, it doesn't hurt to double check.

Related wikiHows

• How to Select the Perfect Library Book
  
• How to Read Words With the Middle Letters Mixed Up
  
• How to Read Les Miserables
  
• How to Flatten a Paperback Book

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Read the Classics. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-128: "How to Read Shakespeare for Beginners"

How to Read Shakespeare for Beginners

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Reading Shakespeare can initially be a confusing and frustrating experience, especially since most of us find little emotional connection with poetry written 400 years ago. But with a little common sense and a few general guidelines, you'll be equipped to expertly communicate the political backdrops and emotional motivations of "Hamlet" in no time. With the right tools, the process can be incredibly rewarding and you can always pride yourself in the knowledge that you now possess an understanding of some of the most successful theatrical sensations to have ever been written. You can even impress your dates by dropping in a few appropriate quotations here and there.

Steps

1. Decide on a play. It is generally helpful to choose a play that is highly popular. Reading "King Lear," for instance, can give you greater motivation to understand the text than reading "The Merry Wives of Windsor." It is also helpful to choose a play with themes in which you are interested. Does a tale of "star-crossed lovers" appeal to you? Then "Romeo and Juliet" is right up your alley. Remember that understanding Shakespeare can be a tiring experience for the novice and can easily discourage readers. Most editions will have a brief synopsis printed on the back cover. If the play sounds intriguing, it might make for a good selection.
   
2. Choose a good edition. There are several to choose from. The textual differences are generally minute, but they will differ drastically in their explanation of the text. The Arden is highly regarded as being the most detail oriented edition and providing the most historical information pertaining to the play. The New Folger Library edition, if it is available is a nice choice, as are the Spark notes treatments.. Each page of text provides simple notes and explanations on the opposite side to give you a more accessible understanding of the language.
   
3. Find a synopsis. This might sound like cheating, but is highly valuable to understanding the play. If you possess the New Folger Library edition, a synopsis is provided before each scene. They are written to provide just enough information. Read it. You will then be able to match each character's lines with your understanding of the plot. In addition, because you are not burdened with the effort of "figuring it out," you will be more receptive to the nuances of language and character. Remember, it is difficult to appreciate anything when you have a puzzled look on your face.
   
4. Read the play out loud. Shakespeare's plays were meant to be performed. Do not fall into the trap of intellectualizing the material before you've had a chance to experience it. The reason Shakespeare's works have survived for as long as they have and with such popularity is because we, as an audience, have understood the connection with the human experience. Read aloud. Have fun and act it out if you can. Make it a living experience. You will then reach an understanding that is far greater than what any scholar can say about the subject. You will also have more fun.
   
5. Attend the play. Or watch the movie. After you've finished reading it, of course! It can be a real treat to see a performance of the piece once you've already imagined it in your head. How does the performance compare with your perceptions of the play? Was there something the actor provided that you did not consider? Was there something you would have done differently? Generally speaking, having read the play makes you a much better audience member as you are not struggling to understand the words. If you have finished reading one of Shakespeare's more popular plays as prescribed above, there is a very good chance it is currently in live production or has been produced into a film, often several times.

Tips

• Many of the Bard's plays are now available for listening on CD, audio tape or iPod download. Listening to these may help you become familiarized with the language and make it easier for you to do the reading.
  
• A basic rundown of some of Shakespeare's more popular plays:
  
• Romeo and Juliet Romance Tragedy. A tale of star-crossed lovers. One of the simpler plays due to its straight plot structure, highly recommended for the beginner, but if romance isn't your thing, you may want to put it off until later. Highlight: Mercutio's death speech alone is well worth the cost of admission.
  
• Twelfth Night Romantic Comedy. A woman cross-dresses in order to fit into a male-dominated career (which was, well, all of them, at Shakespeare's time) and falls in love, causing confusion and hijinks to occur.
  
• Taming of the Shrew Romantic Comedy. A rather temperamental woman is "domesticated" by the man who becomes her husband. Warning: May insult modern sensibilities.
  
• Richard III Historical. Full of murder, insanity and a strive for power. A bit more advanced but well worth the effort since so much is going on. Highlight: The conversation between the pair of assassins who go after Richard III's brother (who is in jail at the time).
  
• The Tempest Fantasy. A Shakespearian equivalent to "Lost" or "Survivor" with a bit of wizardry tossed in for fun.
  
• A Midsummer's Night's Dream Fantasy. Fauns, and pixies and magical creatures galore.
  
• Macbeth Tragedy. A Scottish warrior meets a trio of witches who prophesize that he will become king. He tells his wife, who urges him on in his quest to become king. He quickly becomes obsessed, and blood shed and betrayal ensues.
  
• Sometimes, when you are unfamiliar with Shakespeare, you find yourself reading a bunch of lines and have no idea what is being said, what's going on, or even what has happened. The best way to remedy this is to just keep reading. Eventually (even if you are already halfway) you will find that suddenly you can read the script! It just means that you are a beginner, and don't worry if you have trouble understanding. It will come.

Warnings

• "Shakespeare Made Easy." Is a book in which Shakespeare's plays have been translated into modern vernacular. Each page of text is paraphrased into easily understood sentences on the facing page. Although a nice idea to help make Shakespeare more accessible to the masses, this edition is not recommended. Most people who pick up this edition end up only reading the "modern" text and completely ignoring the original writing.

Related wikiHows

• How to Pick a Book to Read
  
• How to Write a Short Story
  
• How to Love Reading
  
• How to Read a Thick Newspaper in a Short Time
  
• How to Read a Picture Book
  
• How to Act Shakespeare

Sources and Citations

• Google Shakespeare

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Read Shakespeare for Beginners. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-127: "How to Balance Work and Play"

How to Balance Work and Play

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Have you been stressed out lately because of your job? Do you want to have some fun, but still do your work? Well, read on if you want to know how to balance work and play.

Steps

1. Take just 10 minutes out of each day and relax, sit down and just clear your mind (in the morning or in the night.)
   
2. Work hard for a certain time, but make sure your play is proportional to that of which you work.
   
3. Enjoy life, when you have a chance for a vacation take it, go somewhere warm. Hawaii is a great place and just unwind.
   
4. Don't give up the things you love to do whether it be i.e. riding a bike or whatever.
   
5. Don't leave work until the day before it's due, do it a couple days before and then relax because your done while everyone else is stressed out.

Tips

• Be flexible, and know when work is appropriate as well as when play is appropriate.

Warnings

• Do not under any circumstance slack off during work to just relax, this is a major no!

Related wikiHows

• How to Stop Being Lazy and Work Hard
  
• How to Enjoy Life as a Teen
  
• How to Balance Work and Parenting as a Single Parent
  
• How to Balance Homework and Chores
  
• How to Enjoy Life

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Balance Work and Play. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-126: "How to Overcome Laziness"

How to Overcome Laziness

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

See The Small, Not The Whole

Steps

1. If possible, first figure out what one, single detail or problem is holding you back. Most likely, the sticking issue is smaller than you think it is, and you can get past it more easily than you think. Whatever it is, don't give up until you find a way to get past it somehow. Remember, it's probably one single, specific problem or detail.
   
2. Now, think about the importance of the problem or goal. Is it something you can actually afford to ignore? Is it something that somebody else can help you with? Can you just forget about this and try a different approach altogether? Are you being too much of a perfectionist?
   
3. Some who feel they might be "lazy" are actually recreating and reliving unpleasant or dreary "freezes" from childhood. No need to dig into your past. But if you do feel stuck, try jumping up, do a task, and tell yourself "Despite an old habit of freezing up, I can get up right now and be productive!"
   
4. Decide to start the work and you are well on your way to completing it.
   
5. Whatever task is at hand, take a step back, relax and see one small thing to do, then break it down into tiny, easily manageable steps at a realistic 15 minutes to do, i.e., just focus on one task, not the whole problem. Estimate how long it would take to do that one thing. Forget everything else, for now. Our brains seem to shut down when there is constant pressure to do this, do that, complete this by this or that date. You are your own boss.
   
6. Gear yourself up into action by telling yourself something like: "I want to do this; I want to do this NOW! So I’ll just do it and rest later". Say it out loud if you have to! You'll find that you will have eventually talked yourself into wanting to do it!
   
7. Finishing that little step will feel remarkably good, and tell yourself (out loud, if necessary) "Good stuff; you're on a roll; keep this up and you're going to make it to the end of this". Working towards little goals is actually the secret to big success: big successes are just made up of many little continuous successes.
   
8. Don't forget to reward yourself for the very small things you complete or try. If you manage to do something that you didn't the day before, you deserve a nice treat. You need to reward yourself for completing each task, in order to feel good about having pushed yourself in order to get the job done. After the 'small' task is complete, reward yourself by going for a walk for a few minutes or eat some nuts or some other small reward/break (or relax doing something you would like to if you have already been out). Doing this will train your mind into wanting to work. As well, cumulative rewards make you feel confident -- and that's the REAL cure for laziness. Some say you may also want to punish yourself for each step you fail to achieve, but this is ill-advised as it will only reinforce the negative behavior that ultimately leads to avoidance at the prospect of failure.
   
9. Don't stop now. It's hard to get on a roll, so once you're there, jump right onto your next goal as soon as you're done rewarding yourself. The longer you delay re-starting, the harder it will be to re-start. But the sooner you re-start, the more confident you will feel -- and that will reinforce the positive behavior that leads to feeling that you can do anything!
   
10. It's one thing to find your motivation. But, it's another thing to keep it going when the going gets tough -- especially when it's an unforeseen problem! The more avoidant you are, the more you will feel like giving up. How to get past the tough point? Tell yourself over and over: "I really want to get past this; I really want to overcome this", until you believe that you actually don't want to give up.
    
11. Stay off the couch until you are ready to take a break. And when you do sit, set a time when you will return to your task or to do other activities around the house: read a book, run a load of laundry, write to a friend, etc.
    
12. Set some long term goals. If you have goals set up for yourself, you have something to look forward to. Pick goals which are high and will really inspire you. Picture what you really want. Low goals will not really motivate you. Your goals can be to save to buy a home, that red sports car, or fulfill your lifelong dreams (maybe you've been wanting to open a bookstore, an arcade, or start your own publishing company). Make a to-do list, both of large and small things, and prioritize.
    
13. Also, make that list of all the smaller things you want: new clothes, a CD player, some furniture, even a dog. Think about the smaller things that you want every day; if it's constantly in your mind, you'll start moving toward those goals.

Tips

• Use common sense and picture the demon and the angel on your shoulders. If you work at it using common sense, the angel will win more and more often.
  
• If you do not work or need to leave your house first thing in the morning - set your alarm to wake up at a decent morning hour - say 7 am. Shower, get dressed and make yourself look presentable before leaving your room. Always dress as if you were planning to leave the house -- get out of the jammies before leaving the bedroom. Make your bed so it doesn't appeal to you later.
  
• Make sure you're on a healthy diet; junk food doesn't give your body the nutrients it needs to be active.
  
• Exercise. Go jogging through your neighborhood a few times a week, and in time you will see an improvement in the way that you feel and look. Working out will give you a lot of motivation and keep you from getting or feeling lazy. If you haven't worked out much before, stretch first, then start slow. If you don't, you will be in so much pain from sore or pulled muscles it will be easy to use it as an excuse to stop exercising.
  
• Make sure to drink a lot of water all day long, so you don't become dehydrated.
  
• Getting enough sleep each night can make you feel more awake. Depending on your activity and age, you may need up to 10 hours (teenagers) or as little as 5 (elderly).
  
• Avoid sugar and especially foods with "high fructose corn syrup" or "corn syrup" in the ingredients, as these can lead your body into metabolizing sugars instead of fats. Also, unnatural sugars (without fiber) may give you a short energy buzz, but then a blood sugar drop and you will feel fatigued and hungry.
  
• Consider getting rid of your television.
  
• Place copies of a goal sheet or your routine everywhere: one on the fridge, on your night stand, by your computer, on your bathroom mirror, even on the bedroom door. Just place them where you look or go to often.

Warnings

• If you think you are lazy but nobody else thinks you are, DO NOT WORK HARDER. It will cause more stress and will defeat your whole purpose here.
  
• If the suggestions above don’t increase your activity level or elevate your low mood, feeling of being overwhelmed, or prolonged very low self esteem, then you may have a more serious case of depression.
  
• Everyone will get depressed at some point, usually because of a depressing situation (like a death, a job loss, etc.) and most come out of it within a few days. But if the depression lasts two weeks or more, or it starts interfering with your work/school, or it occurs frequently, then you should seek professional advice to determine that you have no underlying medical condition and to receive appropriate treatment and advice.

Related wikiHows

• How to Tell if You Are Depressed
  
• How to Be Lazy Around the House
  
• How to Be Comfortable Around in Laws
  
• How to Clean a House
  
• How to Nap
  
• How to Balance Work and Play

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Overcome Laziness. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-125: "How to Stay Focused"

How to Stay Focused

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Staying focused can be very difficult. In a book titled, 'As a Man Thinketh' by James Allan, the problem is front and center. The book is short and right to the point. The author describes the process of how thoughts determine our life. We bring about what we think about.
This leads to the question on how to stay focused on results we would like to bring about, and to keep the mind right on target.

Steps

1. Exert your willpower. It's the hardest thing in the world to stay focused, but you must force your thoughts to stop straying and return to your point.
   
2. Discover a purpose to help drive you. We usually lack motivation or a purpose. Have you ever thought that a purpose is like a driving force just like fuel for a car? Without a reason that is big enough, you will hardly make it. If the purpose is big enough, then the how always takes care of itself. Failure is not even a consideration.
   
3. Clarify your goal. Is it the million dollars you have in mind or is it the boat you can buy if you accomplish the goal? Work toward your stated purpose in incremental steps - boat today, a million dollars tomorrow.
   
4. Repeat your "focus mantra." What you think about is what you bring about, just as explained in the book referenced earlier. Your mind is affectionately occupied with the boat. You read about it, you dream about it, you check in newspapers, you visit boat stores, and slowly but surely create enough thought energy in this pervasive thought to materialize all the things, people, opportunities and money necessary to bring the boat into your life. Along the way, you did not dream of having 1 million dollars, you dreamed of the boat as your first focused goal. The thought of the boat becomes tangible to you in an emotionally charged way that the million dollars does not yet.
   
5. Be sure your desire for the purpose is strong enough. The most important question to ask before you try to achieve any goal is, Do you really have a strong desire to make it, a powerful purpose that motivates you, that magic glitter in your eyes when you think about it, the certainty to make it? If not, the effort will be futile. Just search deeper and keep looking for that which really sparks you.
   
6. Don't be afraid to dream a big dream. To keep your mind focused you need big, bold goals. The bigger your purpose the less trouble you will have to achieve what you have in mind.
   
7. Take a break every so often. This help you maintain focus and refresh your mind. It is recommended you take a 5 minute break every 30 minutes of work.

Tips

• Do not make a goal out of something you do not have already as a great passion in your life. Use something that inspires you and gives you certainty and confidence. Then plan it much bigger and go for it.
  
• Do not mistake envy with a desired goal. Envy makes you weak. Inspiration and passion makes you strong.

Related wikiHows

• How to Reach Your Hardest Goals
  
• How to Set Goals

Sources and Citations

• http://www.marcusfreudenmann.com/books.html

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Stay Focused. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-124: "How to Accomplish a Goal"

How to Accomplish a Goal

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Everyone has dreams. Whether they are big or small, they have vast importance in our lives. But, the procrastonator in all of us doesn't have to win. With just a little bit of planning, accomplishing a goal is a simple task.

Steps

1. Set a realistic but challenging/inspiring goal. Take a big dream, like "I want to be famous", and break it down into smaller, more manageable steps, like "I want to star in a science fiction movie", "I want to go to three auditions a week", "I want to move to another city" and "I want to save $5000 so I can move." Make the goal big enough to challenge and excite you, but not so big that you hesitate to take the first steps.
   
2. Plan ahead. Once you've broken down your goal into pieces, write down the steps on a piece of paper to make sure you have everything thought out. One of the worst things that can happen is you're almost to the point of your goal, but you're not sure what to do next. Also, give yourself deadlines for each step. Otherwise, you'll end up procrastinating and never achieving your dream.
   
3. Brainstorm ideas. Are there different ways to reach your goal? Write everything down that you can think of in three minutes, no matter how silly or impossible it may seem. For example, you could go to acting school, or maybe you could land a spot in a reality show that would get you started.
   
4. Ask. No one can tell you exactly what you should do to achieve your goal, but one of the best sources for guidelines is to ask those who have done what you hope to achieve. Learn from the experience of others without trying to imitate them.
   
5. Define and describe your goal. Write down when you want to achieve it. Write down the reasons why you want it. Write down what it would feel like after you have achieved it. Figure out exactly what it will take to get it. Be realistic about the time things will take. Many people don't allow themselves enough time, and give up too soon.
   
6. Be positive. Your goal should be written and have positive intent about what you want to bring into your life. This is very important, since the focus of your goal should not be centered around describing a problem you want to eliminate.
   
7. Make contingency plans. Never forget about the problems that might come up on the way, and prepare for them. Positive thinking is important, but preparedness is better than being shocked or devastated when obstacles appear.
   
8. Learn from mistakes. Making mistakes should be a subject at school to teach all children how to learn from them, instead of trying to avoid them. In the pursuit of a goal, you are likely to make some mistakes. Don't see them as bad or get angry. They are important to correct you and to lead you to success.
   
9. Draw on all your past achievements that are relevant to your goal. No matter how small you perceive your achievements, list them anyway. It could be something small, such as joining a healthy eating mailing list, to coming home from work late, yet preparing a tasty nutritious meal for your family in under 30 minutes. Once you review your list, you will be amazed at how all those small achievements soon add up, and how much you are really capable of doing.
   
10. Visualize. Close your eyes and imagine yourself accomplishing your goals. Where are you? How did you get there? How do you feel? Do this often. Don’t get swayed easily with the noise and happenings going on outside. Put your attention on what you are trying to achieve. Remember the goal, and you will have control over the discomforts and difficulties. A good way to visualize is to practice self-hypnosis.
    
11. Listen to your internal dialogue. What you are saying inside affects you physically, emotionally and mentally. Is your defense system inside trying to make you stick to your past, limiting beliefs and perceptions? Take over and challenge your inner critics. Monitor any excuses you might be making in relation to your goal. For example, saying "I don't finish work until late and won't have time to cook!" You must recognize that if you are truly passionate about your goal, it is up to you to make time.
    
12. Make a list of your personal strengths in relation to your goal. For instance, if you have a healthy eating goal you might want to consider strengths such as your level of commitment to eating healthily, or the fact that you enjoy cooking and experimenting with new recipes or even that you are an excellent cook. The list of personal strengths you can draw up is endless.
    
13. Seek help. Find the information, skills and knowledge that you need from other people, books, and audio or video programs. Speed up your learning process by emulating what other successful people have done. You save time and get results faster. Self-hypnosis audios are a powerful way to help you get fast, permanent results.
    
14. Create benchmarks or milestones. A benchmark is something you can use to measure your progress and know you're on track. For example, you can write "The first stage of reaching my goal will be done when I'm in the Entertainment section of the newspaper!" or "I'll know I've reached my goal of being famous when I'm a guest on Oprah."
    
15. Make a timeline. Draw a horizontal timeline with a dot at each end. The left end represents now, and the right end represents a point in the future. Specify what you want to happen and when, from now until then.
    
16. Be passionate. Striving towards a goal without passion is like a fire which slowly runs out of fuel to burn. Get excited; this will mean that you will love what you are doing. Methodically check your behaviors against impassioned dreams developed as a child. Always share the child within amongst your potential peers. This empowers the Law of Attraction that shapes the dreams of the child into the creative force of the adult.
    
17. Revisit, evaluate, and if necessary, adjust your goals. Keep a written record of your goals in a place where you'll remember to read them every day. They'll change and adjust over time as your life does, so keep them up-to-date.
    
18. Consider new opportunities and options that come your way. Sometimes things have a way of unintentionally leading you exactly where you want to go.
    
19. Start working towards your goals today. Ask yourself, "What can I do today to get one step, however small, closer to achieving my goals?"
    
20. Persevere. Now that you've got the momentum going, don't let it stop! Some steps may seem less exciting than others, but make sure to stick to your plan until the end!

Tips

• Don't forget the words of Lao-Tzu: "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."
  
• Be true to yourself. Your goal won't be nearly as sweet if you achieve it by doing things you're not proud of.
  
• Make sure your goal is SMART:
  
• Specific
  
• Measurable
  
• Achievable
  
• Realistic
  
• Team-oriented
  
• Time-related
  
• Put it in writing. Writing reinforces thoughts. Even if you are the only one to see what you've written, writing down your goals can give more power to your intentions.
  
• Always stay in a good mood when finishing your goals (get your mind right AND SMILE). Not that it's the law but science has proven goals get finished 2 to 20 times faster when you're in a good or great mood. Imagine any goal you want, getting finished 20 times faster! How easy is it to focus when you're not in a good mood? Don't get tricked into slowing down!

Warnings

• Things don't always work out as you had planned. Stick to your goals, but be flexible.
  
• Don't share your goals with people who might tear you down. But, conversely; find someone close to you or a coach who will play the devil's advocate role - as learning to challenge yourself in new ways can help you to improve and get closer to your goals.
  
• Do not be tempted to squeeze a square peg into a round hole. If something doesn't fit or it doesn't feel right, try a different approach.
  
• Please remember that every coin has two sides. Do not be rigid in accepting or rejecting any advice. Goals such as freedom struggle are not necessarily Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-related; nevertheless, they created history.
  
• Often times, when you get good at accomplishing goals people tend to become more likely to distract you. In psychology that fact of life is summarized like this: "Dysfunctional people hate seeing healthy progression of character in others". So don't let it get to you and recognize it, or that can get out of hand! Now dysfunctional, doesn't mean mentally or physically handicapped. But if someone has a problem finishing tasks in any area of life, when they see you being successful, subconsciously their mind will convince them to build up sabotaging circumstances for you. That can also be summarized by the other psychological analogy "You become who you hang around. You stay the level of skill as who or what you believe". So just remember to believe the ones with the good results when faced with a important choice.

Related wikiHows

• How to Go for Your Dreams
  
• How to Switch Careers
  
• How to Recreate Your Life
  
• How to Achieve Your Goals
  
• How to Realize Your True Potential
  
• How to Be Bold
  
• How to Hypnotize Yourself Using the Best Me Technique

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Accomplish a Goal. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-123: "How to Wake Up On Time"

How to Wake Up On Time

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Do you have trouble waking up on time in the mornings despite desperate attempts to do so? Are you afraid you might lose your job or fail a class because you can’t get up in time? While most people can simply set an alarm clock and get up at the desired time, almost everybody has trouble rousing themselves at some point, and many people frequently sleep through their alarms. If you’re chronically late for work, or if you just need to make sure you don’t miss your flight early tomorrow morning, read on.

Steps

1. Get enough sleep. It’s hard to drag yourself out of bed after one night of inadequate sleep, and chronic sleep deprivation (a sleep deficit) makes the task even harder. Determine how much sleep you need and make sure to get about that amount each night. At a bare minimum, when waking up on time is crucial, you should try very hard to go to sleep for at least seven hours, even if you have otherwise restful sleep patterns. Your body can't "store" sleep.
   
2. Get into a rhythm. Your body’s clock follows a circadian rhythm. If your rhythm is set properly, you may be able to regularly wake up refreshed without an alarm, but if it’s not you’ll wake up groggy or even sleep through your alarm altogether. Make an effort to get to bed and to get up at about the same times every day. If you work changing shifts or otherwise have to adjust your schedule, your rhythm will be thrown off for a while, but you can reset it over a few days.
   
3. Adjust for your sleep cycles. The typical human sleep cycle is 90 minutes. Adjust the time you wake up or the time you go to bed so that you sleep for some multiple of 90 minutes (6, 7.5 or 9 hours, for example), and you’ll wake up more refreshed.
   
4. Sleep well. Eight hours of sleep won’t help you much if you don’t get quality sleep. Minimize disturbances that may wake you up in the night:
   
• Get a comfortable bed
  
• Set your thermostat so you’ll sleep at a comfortable temperature
  
• Reduce external noises by closing windows, turning off the TV, or using a device that generates constant “white noise.”
  
• Guard against mosquitos if you are in a place where mosquito problem is , take preventive measures so you are fully guarded against them when asleep.
  
• Consider getting a larger bed or sleeping in separated beds if your spouse or partner wakes you up with his or her tossing and turning. Better yet, get a mattress that absorbs motion and will not be felt by your partner.
  
• Abstain from caffeine and alcohol, especially at night.
  
• Read the related wikiHows for more tips on getting to sleep and getting quality sleep.
  
5. Get the right alarm clock. Some people need a very loud, harsh alarm, some can’t wake up to the radio, and some find that gradual waking works best. There are even alarms to stick near you that will vibrate to awake you. Experiment to find the alarm clock that’s best for you.
   
6. Position your alarm clock so that you have to get out of bed to turn it off. It’s quite common to reach over to the nightstand, turn off the alarm, and go back to sleep without even remembering doing so. If you have to get out of bed and walk across the room, however, you’re more likely to stay awake.
   
7. Set multiple alarm clocks. If you know that one alarm will not wake you up permanently, set more than one to go off. You can set them both for the same time if you have trouble hearing just one, or you can set the second to go off 5-10 minutes after the first. You may find it helps if they make different sounds.
   
8. Get someone to help you. If your spouse or partner doesn’t have trouble waking up on time, ask him or her to help you wake up and to make sure you stay awake. A reliable roommate might also be willing to help if you give him or her a few bucks or cook breakfast. You could also ask a friend to call you in the morning and talk to you for a minute or so until you become fully awake. If you can’t find a reliable friend who’s willing to help, get a wakeup call. Long a staple in hotels, wakeup calls to your home or cell phone are now available by subscription or for one-time calls.
   
9. Get out of bed if you wake up a few minutes before your alarm rings. Because of nightly hormonal changes to natural sleep cycles, many people find that they wake up a few minutes before their alarm goes off. If this occurs, consider it a sign that you’re ready to get up. If you go back to sleep to wait for the alarm, you’ll likely feel more drowsy.
   
10. Brighten up your bedroom. The body naturally wakes up faster when it’s light out, so keep your curtains open to use the sun to help you awake. If you need to wake up when it’s dark, or if you live in a dreary, cloudy place, consider using a timer on your bedroom lamp or getting a light box or a bedside dawn simulator.
    
11. Get pumped. When you wake up, get out of bed immediately, switch on some music (the more energetic the better), and get moving. Do some calisthenics or quickly go about your morning routine.
    
12. Take a shower as soon as you get out of bed, alternating the temperatures between hot and cold to get your circulation going. Use shower gels with ingredients such as lemon or peppermint essential oils to help make you more alert. If a shower is not possible, try putting a couple of drops of essential oils onto a tissue and inhaling their fragrance. Some alarm clocks now have aromatherapy components built in, as well.
    
13. Have a drink. Drinking some water as soon as you wake up stimulates the body and will help you stay awake. If you need something stronger, try coffee or tea. If you have trouble making it out of your bedroom without coffee, consider putting your coffeemaker in your room and setting the timer so that a cup of Joe will be waiting for you when you wake up.
    
14. Use a very loud alarm like the windup clock pictured above. Place the clock inside a kitchen pot or other metal container turned upside down.

Tips

• If all else fails, just put your alarm clock away from your bed, and extra loud. You wont be able to sleep, if you don't get up.
  
• After setting your alarm clock, put it in a box, lock it with a key and put the key in the farthest corner of the house. You should be awake by the time you get it unlocked to turn it off.
  
• Try placing peppermints, Tic-Tacs, gum, or any kind of food on top of your alarm. When the alarm goes off, pop some into your mouth before turning it off. No matter how sleepy you are, you can't fall asleep with something in your mouth. Additionally, mint flavor can increase your alertness.
  
• There are some really great gadgets out there that will help you to wake up in the mornings. Try the Puzzle Clock for example. The key is to get your mind moving, and to give yourself a chance to remember that you don't want to go back to sleep!
  
• There are some clocks out there that have a part that either flies or rolls around, and in order to shut the alarm off, you have to catch them and return them to the alarm base. Ex. "Clocky Mobile Alarm Clock" or "Blowfly Alarm Clock"
  
• If you know that you find it difficult to function in the mornings, prepare as much as you can the night before, so that you have less to worry about when you wake up.
  
• Before you go to sleep, try telling yourself what time you want to wake up. It may sound strange, but often works.
  
• You might want to give yourself a tiny boost in the morning by having something to look forward to. It doesn't have to be something big, but just something that will brighten your day and make you want to get out of bed.
  
• Splash your face with cold water. The cold water will wake you up, and you can get a move on from there.
  
• Make sure that your alarm is properly set before going to bed.
  
• Make sure to remember all the reasons you need to get right out of bed.
  
• It also helps to have a loud alarm clock. This will wake you up rapidly and eventually your body will adapt to waking at the sound of anything.
  
• A B-complex vitamin supplement may help a person to establish (or change) a natural circadian rhythm.
  
• Try putting a slice of lemon next to your alarm, when you shut off your alarm, lick or suck on the lemon. That'll wake you up for sure!
  
• Get a whiteboard and write down a few good things that you're looking forward to (even if it's getting home!) for motivational purposes. Also write down a few mandatory things you need to do in the morning. For example, you may need to finish typing your report. Write that down.
  
• Try drinking something before you go to sleep, such as a bottle of water. By the time your alarm goes off, you will probably have to use the bathroom and won't be able to go back to sleep comfortably.

Warnings

• Sleep aid drugs may help you to get to sleep and to get a better night’s rest, but they may also leave you too drowsy to wake up when you need to. They can also be addictive, so avoid using them if possible, especially over long periods of time.
  
• Don’t go back to bed. After you’ve been up and moving for a while, it’s sometimes tempting to lie down “just for a minute or so.” Don’t do it; all your preparations will be down the drain if you fall asleep unexpectedly. Your tiredness will soon pass if you stay up.
  
• Chronic difficulty sleeping or frequent tiredness may be caused by a sleep disorder or other medical condition. Check with your doctor if these symptoms persist.
  
• If you drink something before bed, make sure it doesnt have a lot of sugar or caffeine. Water works best.

Related wikiHows

• How to Wake Up Without an Alarm Clock
  
• How to Be Punctual
  
• How to Know How Much Sleep You Need

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Wake Up On Time. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-122: "How to Motivate Yourself"

How to Motivate Yourself

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

A simple guide to getting back up after a tough figurative fall.

Steps

1. Think through a set of goals that sound as though they are what you want, and try to be specific. The key to most motivation remains setting goals, but you can't just pick any goals.
   
2. Make it general. Let's say you want a Corvette specifically, are you really saying you want a new car, or maybe just a car you can stop worrying about? Getting yourself to a reliable car is a goal that is easier to achieve and accomplishes the need you had from the get go. This is not copping out--no one needs a Corvette.
   
3. Do this with all of the goals you have, do not simply pick ones that sound good like most people pick New Year's resolutions. If the goals you set for yourself make your life easier or more rewarding, they are probably the type you need to focus on.
   
4. Cut pictures out of the car that you want, or the TV, stereo, golf clubs, whatever you are aiming for, and put them up somewhere you can see them every day. On the fridge door, or on the wall next to the computer. When you look say "That's my car" or "That's my TV". Visualizing these items as yours will help keep you motivated.
   
5. Anyone who has had serious issues with motivation knows that someone telling you to "stay motivated" is a bit daft, since you weren't in a motivated state to begin with, and as such, is hard to /stay/ in. However anyone can get themselves motivated.
   
6. Make your goals in the very beginning small. If you write out a long list of things that are really valuable for you to do, and then you mess one up, you're going back to starting at zero and you will likely feel pretty badly. Instead make a list for each day, and at first, only put down maybe 3 or 4 things, a set of activities that might take you 2 or 3 hours.
   
7. If you can do that, then a week later start adding things in about an hour at a time and build up. It's like doing pushups in the Army, the first day you get there and feel terrible because you can't keep up with the physical training, but you build up to it. Goals and mental attitudes are the same way. You have to make it a series of small steps. Don't set yourself up for failure by reaching too high at first. You can always reach higher the next week. There's no limit here, so pace yourself.
   
8. Rely upon yourself for the motivation and the drive. Other people do not have and will never have the same vested interest in your success. Motivation and success is a function of habit. You must break your bad habit of procrastination, and replace it with one of good planning. The most successful people in the world aren't always the brightest, or the best looking, but no matter what other talents or gifts they have been blessed with, they have underpinning their self esteem a series of victories over tasks both large and small. This is how you learn anything in school, gain confidence dating, and everything else in life.
   
9. Don't just think that you're the best, prove it to yourself. Your opinion matters the most in your own motivation, but you know when you're pulling your own leg as to your accomplishments. It's far easier to just start dealing with your responsibilities and knowing, with an incredibly strong epistemic justification (by which I mean, you KNOW this) that you can handle what comes up because you have before, than trying to know you can tackle it because you're all warm and fuzzy inside. Warm and fuzzy accomplishes very little, but neither does beating yourself up.
   
10. Reward yourself when you complete a part of your task, your mind will recognise this and you will want to do whatever you did to give yourself a treat more.
    
11. Get back up if you fall. Start again. Start where you are comfortable. Getting back up to try again, no matter how small that task, goal, activity, errand, or whim; If you can complete it, you are already back on your way. Get up, don't look back. Cheers!

Tips

• Focus yourself and your availability: your time and space management. If you can organize your time and work out something that will allow you to build on your motivation and do something to allow you to achieve your goals, you will actually get somewhere.
  
• That's about it. You are the one doing this. Whatever you accomplish, was your doing. Not this article or your mates who encouraged you, but yours. Don't brag, it makes you seem daft. Just keep going. You'll be amazed what you'll end up taking on and completing in short time
  
• Think about a time that you motivated yourself and saw the benefits.
  
• If you can imagine the end goal, in it's entirety and then focus on that image subconsciously your mind will figure out how to do it. So the more you believe it the easier it will be to motivate your self.

Warnings

• There are things that will occur that you must do, studying for exams for instance. With any luck you will be reading this well before your exams, because you should be studying for your exams all semester... now shouldn't you? Procrastination is the opposite of motivation in our day to day lives. Remember, do a bit a day. When your exams come around you won't be sweating like everyone else. Now /that/ is positive reinforcement.
  
• Do not rely on thinking happy thoughts. Know that you can do it from experience.
  
• CONSULT YOUR MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL if this lack of motivation has been paired with feelings of depression, loneliness, bouts of crying, thoughts of hurting yourself or others, etcetera. Clinical Depression is a serious illness that results from chemicals in the brain being quite literally out of balance. Clinical Depression is treatable, many times it is not something which will follow you your whole life, and anyone who thinks it is can bugger off. It's your life, be careful with it, and seeing a doctor if you're the least bit concerned might cost a bit of coin, but could be priceless to have a professional talk to you, and see how he or she can help.

Things You'll Need

• Pen
  
• Paper
  
• Confidence In Yourself
  
• Motivation From Others (optional, but more encouraging)

Related wikiHows

• How to Motivate Yourself to Work Out
  
• How to Motivate a Guy to Like You
  
• How to Be Confident
  
• How to Switch Careers
  
• How to Be Bold
  
• How to Hypnotize Yourself Using the Best Me Technique

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Motivate Yourself. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-120: "How to Multitask"

How to Multitask

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Does it seem like doing only one thing at a time isn't enough anymore? For multitasking to save you time, it has to be done with a little care and attention.

Steps

1. Establish your goals. The old saying, "If you don't know where you're going, any road will get you there" is just as true even if you are following multiple tasks.
   
2. Schedule a time to give intense or complex tasks your full focus. Let it be known that you prefer to have time to yourself for an hour or two each day, and use that time for intense tasks that require your full concentration.
   
3. Work on one thing at a time, but alternate. A juggler may have many objects in the air, but she usually manipulates only one at a time.
   
4. Eliminate unnecessary tasks. If you're multitasking to be more efficient, don't spend time doing extra things. The exception is a background activity to help pass the time. For instance, if listening to the radio or a book on tape helps with the tedium of painting a wall, go for it.
   
5. Choose compatible tasks. For instance, you may find that reading and listening to speech both use the same type of focus. Instead, try pairing a physical task, such as ironing clothes, with a mental task, such as listening to the radio.
   
6. Choose interruptible tasks. Especially if the multitasking consists of dealing with frequent interruptions (such as a ringing telephone), choose tasks that can be easily paused to do concurrently.
   
7. Keep a selection of smaller projects or simpler tasks around to fill gaps in a larger project. That is, do the larger project as a priority, but do basic, filler tasks any time you find yourself waiting for information or inspiration on a larger project.
   
8. Use wait time efficiently. Have something with you to do, especially in places you anticipate waiting (the airport, post office, or dentist's office). Reading is an easy, portable task. Carrying note cards or a notebook to jot ideas is also a good idea.

Tips

• Take the time to plan a bit. Even though planning is not doing, a good plan can make the doing more complete.
  
• Take along something else to do in a meeting, especially if you expect it to include topics that don't involve you. If a meeting will include enough topics that don't involve you, arrange to attend only the relevant parts, or don't attend at all.
  
• Notice what works and what doesn't. If homework in front of the TV takes twice as long as doing homework and watching a show separately would, don't pair those tasks in the future.
  
• Make your exercise and walking time your 'you' time. Do this on lunch hour to save even more time.

Warnings

• Don't overdo it. Don't do so many things at once that none gets done. Also, don't take on so much that you burn out.
  
• Always give your full concentration to tasks that might have safety consequences.

Related wikiHows

• How to Manage Your Time
  
• How to Keep a Calendar
  
• How to Schedule Your Day
  
• How to Be Proactive
  
• How to Make Time Spent Commuting by Car Efficient

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Multitask. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-119: "How to Be Punctual"

How to Be Punctual

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

If you're battling chronic lateness, there is hope. According to the experts, you can avoid procrastination and tardiness by changing your habits and tweaking your routines. Here are some things you can do to turn lateness into punctuality.

Steps

1. Acknowledge that you are a person who is having a hard time being punctual. As with any problem, you cannot fix it if you're in denial that it's a problem at all. But if your chronic tardiness is beginning to strain your job and/or your relationships, the first thing you need to do is acknowledge this as a weakness so you can begin to work toward correcting it.Although if it is a rational problem,like traffic or small children,there is no need to feel bad-just keep working on it!
   
2. Be conscious of the time.
   
• Keep your watch accurate. For some people, moving up the time on their watch will help them be earlier. For others, they will subconsciously know that the time is wrong and so they just disregard it altogether.
  
• Keep a clock, phone, computer or anything that displays time in each room of your house. One of the easiest ways to run late is simply by not realizing that the time is going by as quickly as it is.
  
• Set all your clocks and watches to the same time.
  
• Don't be an optimist. Things usually take significantly longer than you'd expect, even without major delays. If you have a dinner date at 6:30 PM, don't think you can work in your yard until 6:00, then shower, change, and drive across town and make it on time. Realistically assess the time you will take on each step and then add 10 minutes more to allow for unexpected delays,or you can get to the restaurant first and get a good seat, or if your date's early too, you can spend more time with each other!
  
3. Wake up when you're supposed to wake up. Don't hit the snooze button, linger in bed, and watch TV at the very start of your day.Maybe even try setting your clock 10 minutes earlier than you need to. If you have difficulty with this, move your alarm clock to somewhere out of reach from your bed; that way, you have to get up to turn it off. Acquire the habit of sitting up, stretching, and getting out of bed as soon as the alarm goes off. If you can't get out of bed on time, you may be going to bed too late. Try sleeping earlier to allow yourself at least 7 hours sleep. By getting up late you are setting a pattern of lateness for the rest of the day. For more tips on how to do this, see the Related wikiHows section below.
   
4. Commit yourself to being 15 minutes early for everything. If you have to be to work at 8:00, don't even tell yourself this. Just tell yourself (and everyone else who listens- but dont annoy them or make them think that they are late or early!) "I have to be at work at 7:45." If you do this, you will be on time even with little unforeseen interruptions. You will be on time even with a traffic jam. And on those rare times that you actually show up 15 minutes early; you will get kudos for being an enthusiastic employee.You can also chat with others who are early,and that will make you happy before work!
   
5. Bring something you can read in short segments almost everywhere you go. This makes it easy to be early, since in the 10-15 minutes you have before an appointment/event, you can get a few pages of reading done. This makes it feel like you're getting something done (and you are) while you are waiting, if you do have to wait. You can get a ton of reading done this way, too.
   
6. Re-examine how long your daily tasks really take. For example, you might be under the impression that you take a 15 minute shower, assuming that starting at 6:30 you can leave at 6:45. But, what about the time you spend before and after the actual shower? It's quite possible you really spend 20 or even 30 minutes in the bathroom, and that's why you can never leave by 6:45. So, think about the things you do every day, and try and keep an estimate of how long it takes you.Just saying to yourself"Right about 15 mins for that" can fix your lateness and takes about 5 seconds.
   
7. Watch yourself for a few days to see where you often waste the most time. These "time sinkholes" (such as getting distracted while checking emails) are often unnoticed by us and can throw off your daily planning. Try to change your habits around these activities. For example, standing up while quickly checking your emails makes it hard to lose an hour randomly surfing the web.
   
8. Make a note of where you should be in regards to time. For instance, if you have to leave your house at 8 for work, tell yourself, "It's 7:20, I should be getting in the shower." "It's 7:35, I should be brushing my teeth." This will help keep you on track. It is useful to think up a morning schedule to get used to this habit.
   
9. Keep organized. Disorganization is directly related to lateness. How often have you been late because you were looking for your car keys or couldn't find an important document? Keep the things that you use everyday in some resemblance of organization and your routines will go smoother.
   
10. Plan ahead.
    
• Schedule something unimportant right before something very important. If you have an essential interview at 4:00, plan to meet a friend for coffee at the coffee shop next to your interview at 3:30. Then, even if you are late to meet your friend, you will be poised to pounce on your meeting.But remember to tell your friend that you may miss your coffee(they might feel that you are ditching them.)
  
• Pick out your clothes the night before (don't forget your underclothes and shoes!). If you need to bring something with you, set it with your car keys or purse.
  
• If you are going to some unfamiliar place, look over a map, or even drive there once if at all possible. Have your transportation planned; if you drive, keep your car in good order and refill gas in the tank. If you ride a bus, know the route, have your fare, and keep cab money on hand in case of emergency. If you are depending on another person for a ride—have a plan B!
  
11. Go to sleep on time. This makes it a lot easier to get up on time and helps you stay on task during the day. Unless you know otherwise, assume you need eight hours of sleep every night. By far the majority of people need at least this much sleep. College students and younger need more. Most people underestimate their sleep needs.

Tips

• Kids are really good at making their parents late. Follow all the above tips, not just for yourself but also for your kids. Have their clothes ready, make sure they get baths the night before, etc. If your child is very young, make sure their diaper bag is always fully stocked.But some organized twelve year olds can definitelly help you out!
  
• Being habitually punctual tends to have the effect of actually allowing you to be late from time to time. For instance, Sally is often late. Bob is always on time. They both get stuck in traffic, it is the fault of neither of them, but they end up a few minutes late to work. Most bosses aren't even going to blink at Bob. They view him as a responsible person who has had a rough morning. Sally, on the other hand, is going to get yelled at. Her boss will see her tardiness as evidence of a larger pattern, even if it isn't really her fault this time. Also say if you are picking up your child and are always on time, if you are late your child may worry.
  
• Quick thing to remember. "If you are 5 minutes early, you're on time. If you're on time, you're late. If you're late, then you've got a lot of explaining to do."
  
• Old military adage: If you're not 5 minutes early, you're 10 minutes late!

Warnings

• Remember your reputation is on the line. The power of showing up is limitless.
  
• Don’t fool yourself into thinking nobody notices the latecomer. If you think you are more than occasionally late to work, school, church, appointments, etc., you can be sure others have noticed too.
  
• Lateness is corrosive to good relations with friends, work colleagues and of professional standing. Having a strong personality and being able to smooth over individual instances of lateness still leaves a building resentment. Holding people up who have planned and prepared work, journeys, meals, entertainment etc. generates a cumulative irritation and devaluing of you personally.

Related wikiHows

• How to Wake Up On Time
  
• How to Make Time by Prioritizing and Scheduling
  
• How to Do Your Homework on Time if You're a Procrastinator
  
• How to Manage Your Time
  
• How to Save Time in the Morning

Sources and Citations

• SF Gate on Cures for Chronic Tardiness

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Be Punctual. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-118: "How to Manage Your Time Effectively"

How to Manage Your Time Effectively

(Calendar and Memorization Method)

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Managing time is the key to many things. For school, it can really help you out. This is a compilation of time-managing and time-saving techniques.

Steps

1. Get yourself a calendar, and paste it up on a frequently-seen place. If you can't buy one, print one out. Make sure you can write things into it, too, so you can know when to do things.
   
2. Learn memorization methods. It can cut time, and give better results, if you use more than one strategy to memorize something. Example: In certain schools, there is a tradition called Declamation. You memorize something, and recite it. Most people only read it and say it over and over, an agonizing process. But there are other ways to memorize things...
   
3. Learn to love work. Work is much easier and faster when you like working. And don't fall asleep at work! You'll never get anything done if you fall asleep at work. For school, it's generally the same thing. But if you have a teacher that likes to give all the written work in homework form [HW], then take notes during the class, and use those to do the HW.
   
4. Stop procrastinating! Procrastination only piles up work. Do it now, so you can do it in moderation.

Using A Calendar

1. Write down important events, and their corresponding times. When projects are due, when parties are on, and so on are all important things.
   
2. Use colors. It sounds wierd, but if you're in a family, or have a lot of stuff to do, using different colors is always a good idea!
   
3. Highlight the really important stuff! The SATs are more important than a party, so mark it down in a color AND highlight them. That'll bring your eye to them.

Memorization Techniques

1. Try the Subconscious Reading trick. It's based on the Roman Room method, and here's the idea. Type up and print out what you need to learn. Print out four to seven copies preferably. Tape it up all over your room. This method has not been tested, though, so use this only if you are using other methods too-don't rely on it.
   
2. Use the Roman Room trick. Imagine a room. First, memorize all of the room's aspects. Maybe if you're a good drawer, you can draw it out. But don't use the drawing to memorize, memorize it in your head. Then, think of the things you need to remember, and put references to them in your head. Got the SATS next week? Put some SAT practice papers on the desk, write the date in something noticable on the wall, etc.
   
3. Practice your eidetic memory. That is to say, try to train a photographic memory. Example: Practice saying random things said to you in the order that they're said.
   
4. Use study cards. Need to remember a specific name? Write down the name on one side of half an index card, and write important facts on the other side. Or write, say, Spanish on one side, and English on the other. It's very useful, in almost any circumstance. Except memorizing a speech. Don't rely on this to memorize a speech.
   
5. For number memorizing, use the Dominic System.

• A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4, E=5
  
• S=6 G=7 H=8 N=9 O=0

For each two digit numbers, think of something to help you remember it. Example: After just a glance, you can remember that pi's first four digits are 1415, or AD, AE.

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Manage Your Time Effectively (Calendar and Memorization Method). All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-121: "How to Set Goals"

How to Set Goals

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

The next time somebody tells you that setting goals is really a lot of hype, tell him this: if life is a journey, how will you get there if you don’t have an itinerary? Goals tell you where you are going, how you are going to get there and what you will do when you get there.

Steps

1. You have to decide what you want first of all. The problem with so many people is that they do not know what they really want. In other words they are not at all clear about what they want in life. Setting your goals, needs you to make a decision about that which you want, and determine when you want to have achieved that thing. In other words you must put a deadline to what you currently want. Get clear about what you want.#Have a good plan of attack. Ask yourself:
   
• What do I know about this?
  
• What information do I have?
  
• What information do I need? Where can I get it?
  
• What skills do I need to master?
  
• What other resources should I use?
  
• Is this the best way to do it, or is there some other way?
  
2. Start small, but keep walking. Goals don’t necessarily have to be big ones. When you set your goal too high, you might find it too overwhelming and time consuming and just give up, or make another one, just as big. It’s akin to quitting cold turkey – there are setbacks.
   
3. Set goals in small increments, complete with time, dates, amount, some details. If you tell yourself, “I’m going to be an opera singer” and then sit around and wait for it to suddenly happen, you could be waiting all your life. Start with singing lessons for a month, and then a year and expose yourself to opera music. You can then progress to more singing lessons year after year. By breaking down your goals in smaller, workable units, you are more likely to make them come true. Remember, even the great ones had to start somewhere.
   
4. Be positive when stating your goals. Instead of saying, “I am not going to miss my exercise routine today,” say “I’m really busy, so I’ll probably just make time for 20 minutes on the treadmill.” Stating your goal positively will help you view it as a good thing to do, and not as a byproduct of what you had to avoid.
   
5. Spread out your goals. So maybe we do have certain general goals that apply to all areas of our lives like, “I want to be successful” or “I want to be rich” but those would seem as far away as the Niagara Falls viewed from Hawaii. Instead, try making tiny goals for different aspects of your life, one or two for each, even more if you like. These areas are: family and home, career, social, physical, mental and spiritual. If you say, “I want to be a successful dad,” then try to make goals towards the development of your family life while still keeping an eye out for ways to improve your career and other areas of your life.
   
6. Don’t underestimate yourself. It’s tempting to sometimes just slack off, or let yourself off too easy. If you want to write the definitive American novel, then don’t try to churn out just a page or two a day when you know you are more than capable of writing five pages, even ten. The fear of failure is sometimes to blame for setting our goals too low. How often have we said, “I don’t really want to volunteer for that project ‘cause I might screw it up. And then my colleagues will make fun of me.”
   
7. Remember that some fears are unfounded. How do you know you’ll actually ruin it? And how do you know for sure your coworkers will laugh at your effort? If you try to reason with your fears, more often than not, you’ll realize that there really is no reason for you to be reluctant and that in fact, you can do it.
   
8. Write it down. Putting your goal down on paper is more than just memorizing it. You are actually confirming your willingness to make it come true. A written list of goals is an effective reminder of what you need to do and once you’re done, a good review of your accomplishment. A simple list on a piece of notebook paper is fine, or using a computer program to really jazz it up works just as well. You may want to hang it up somewhere, as a constant reminder to work toward your goals: inside your closet, the back of your medicine cabinet door, or on your bulletin board near your desk.
   
9. Affirm it. Affirmation is really more than writing down, “I am going to buy my $750,000 home by Christmas” twenty times. It’s actually being conscious not only of your thought processes, but also of your acts during the day.
   
10. If you’re trying to save money and then you pass by a shop window where a great pair of shoes seems to have your name on it, think, “If I buy those shoes, would I be making my goal of saving easier? Will I be able to meet my deadline if I splurge just this once? A few months from now if I don’t meet my deadline because I didn't save enough, would I feel good about it?”
    
11. Stop procrastinating. So you’ve heard this before. Big deal. Well, it is. Time wastage is one of the greatest crimes in history. If Henry Ford put off studying and tinkering with machines for another time, someone else would have improved on automobiles and he wouldn't have gone down in history as a pioneer. If you’re used to procrastination, being bullheaded about a goal can seem scary at first. Try to set a schedule and then reward yourself each time you meet it.
    
12. Start inculcating the habit of liking something.The most difficult thing is to LIKE something useful.For example we may like that particular model,star,lazing around with friends,to impress the opposite sex etc...but do they give us any long term returns?They just look jazzy for a small period of time and again life is as usual, that which has no achievement..Our mind generally rejects any conscious attempt to focus on any worthwhile goal.Some really lucky souls subconsciously liked these worthwhile goals and made it big.Many of us focus subconsciously on these petty things such as entertainment,celebrities etc...and when time comes for focusing on big ones we back out because we have an already loaded negative image of that goal.It is simply a misinterpreted relativity.No reason to feel worthless before a big goal just because we have been LIKING petty goals. You need to think big, when you are setting goals, think great thoughts. You must also crystallize your thinking, make it clear top you first, then write it down.
    
13. Plan ahead, so you can get ahead.

Tips

• Small decisions can have a great impact on you working towards your goal. Remember that your goals are your road maps to success in life. Without them, you can lose your way. Although you can always retrace your steps, you might not have the time, opportunity, energy or resources you once had when you could have made your goals happen one by one.

Related wikiHows

• How to Accomplish a Goal
  
• How to Form a Plan
  
• How to Find Yourself
  
• How to Go for Your Dreams

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Set Goals. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-117: "How to Stop Procrastinating"

How to Stop Procrastinating

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Procrastination can lead to many problems -- tests failed, weight gained, relationships weakened. But you can change your ways.

Steps

1. Look at the effects of procrastination versus not procrastinating. What rewards lie ahead if you get it done? What are the effects if you continue to put it off? Which situation has better effects? Chances are, you will benefit more in the long term from facing the task head on.
   
• Count how much time you spend on activities procrastinating. You may be shocked by the amount of time wasted simply watching TV.
  
2. Set reasonable goals. Plan your goals carefully, allowing enough time to complete them.
   
3. Break the task down into smaller parts. How can you approach it step by step? If you can concentrate on achieving one goal at a time, the task may become less of a burden.
   
4. Get started whether you "feel" like it or not. Going from doing nothing to doing something is often the hardest part of overcoming procrastination. Once you start, it will be easier to continue.
   
5. Ask for help. You don't always have to do it alone.
   
6. Don't expect perfection. No one is perfect. It's better to try your best than to do nothing at all.
   
7. Reward yourself. The reward that lies at the end of a long road to a goal may be great, but while you're on the way, it may not always be enough to motivate you. Remind yourself-with a break, a movie, some kind of treat you like-that you are making successful progress.
   
8. Don't let yourself be distracted - by taking control and saying "no" to picking up the guitar, playing a DVD, or texting your friends, you build confidence in your ability.
   
9. Other time traps to avoid: saying yes when you don't have the time, studying when you're tired or in a distracting location, not thinking ahead, not curbing your social time, and finally, taking on too many tasks and projects.

Tips

• You may want to take a course in time management.
  
• Several books have been written on procrastination. Here are the titles: "Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It" by Jane B. Burka, Lenora M., Ph.D. Yuen, "The Now Habit: A Strategic Program for Overcoming Procrastination and Enjoying Guilt-Free Play" by Neil Fiore and for students, "Beat Procrastination and Make the Grade : A Life-Saving Guide for Students" by Linda Sapadin, Jack Maguire. These are highly recommended.
  
• Of course, not everyone enjoys reading - a very good audio CD/cassette is, "Make Your Mind Work for You : New Mind Power Techniques to Improve Memory, Beat Procrastination and More" by Joan Minninger.
  
• If you are reading this now because you are trying to procrastinate, stop procrastinating immediately and get back to work!!!
  
• If you hate to read and begin to procrastinate think of it this way. If you have to read a 276 page book divide it into the amount of time you have. If you have about 2 weeks, reading about 21 pages a day is much less overwhelming.
  
• Just start working.
  
• Imagine how good you will feel when the thing you are putting off is done and off your mind.
  
• It is normal at the start of any task or change in life to feel like you want to give it up or not bother and return to what is easy. Push on; it's worth it.

Warnings

• If your procrastination is very serious then you should see a specialist.

Related wikiHows

• How to Motivate Yourself
  
• How to Manage Your Time Effectively
  
• How to Persuade Yourself to Do Anything
  
• How to Set Goals

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Stop Procrastinating. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How To-116: "How to Make Time by Prioritizing and Scheduling"

How to Make Time by Prioritizing and Scheduling

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

You may not be able to create time, but you can manage your life effectively to maximize the time you spend with people, pets, work, friends, family, and just hanging around.

Steps

1. Identify your priorities. Select four or five things that you absolutely must do or are important to you. This may include work, school, a significant other, your family, anything that you feel you should devote a good amount of time to.
   
2. Write out every hour of the day on a piece of paper starting with the hour you wake up. If you wake up at 6:30 a.m., start with 6:00 a.m. Then make a list going to 7:00 a.m., 8:00 a.m., etc. until you’re back to the beginning. You’ve just made a schedule!
   
3. Determine what you need the most. A lot of people feel that their job is the most important – we have to earn money after all – so getting to work on time and leaving on time would be a high priority. Block out this time on your schedule.
   
4. Determine the other priorities, ranking the most important to the least important. Place these in your schedule where they fit.
   
5. Identify when you should go to sleep. Adults should get 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Teenagers should get about 8-10 hours of sleep, often in the form of a nap and 6-7 hours sleep. Children should get about 8-9 hours of sleep and a 1-2 hour nap.
   
6. Get into a regular sleeping rhythm, waking up at the same time in the morning and going to bed at the same time each night. This should coincide with your morning and evening priorities. Weekends should be no different than weekdays. Wake up at the same time all the time.

Tips

• If your priorities take more time than you have during the day, try making a schedule for every day of the week. Then cycle your priorities throughout the week so that by the end, you’ve spent a good amount of time on all of them.
  
• A good priority to have is free time. This will allow you to laze around the house if you need to, or go out with friends, or fix up or clean up your home. Don’t schedule this every day necessarily, but enough that you can get things done over a week’s time.
  
• Start your schedule at the beginning of the week. This way you can see all the changes you have made throughout the week. This will also get rid of the feeling that you are constantly catching up from when you didn’t have a schedule.
  
• Don’t be afraid to schedule things with only a little bit of time in between. Over-estimating the time between priorities can leave you with “dawdling” time that is just wasted. Every minute counts! So, schedule things tight, but not too tight in case you need to make changes.

Warnings

• If you sleep in on the weekends, this will make Mondays and Tuesdays all that much harder to wake up. Make sure to wake up at the same time every day, even on the weekends.
  
• Don’t schedule for other people! Each person has different priorities. If you want to help someone make a schedule and prioritize, sit down with them and walk them through these steps.

Things You'll Need

• Paper
  
• Pen or Pencil
  
• Will power

Related wikiHows

• How to Plan a Homework Schedule and Do Homework
  
• How to Deal With a Hard School Schedule
  
• How to Be Yourself
  
• How to Manage Change in Life
  
• How to Prioritize
  
• How to Manage Priorities With Excel

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make Time by Prioritizing and Scheduling. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.