Related Pages in this Manual
- Growing Your GLP: Structuring the Work
- Activities, Campaigns & Projects: Checklists
Time Management
We all know it is tough to be a full-time student, to keep up with a job, to keep up with a social life and to keep a well-balanced life. Helping green living program (GLP) reps with their time management will not only help them personally, but it will help strengthen the effectiveness of the program as a whole.
Realistic Expectations
Be aware of the realities of student involvement and the realities of their academic schedule. Try to think through how long the tasks you are asking reps to do really takes. For example, if you ask them to go door-to-door, be aware of whether there are 50 or 200 rooms in their residence. Consider asking reps to go to only a third of the rooms this week (and the rest during another week); consider asking them to set a time limit on going door-to-door; or, better yet, think of a more effective way to reach out to all the students in the residence without a task that takes 10 hours to realistically complete.
It is very important that you set out realistic goals for the reps, recognizing that four hours per week is a limited amount of time. Otherwise, if reps realize the task you have asked them to do will take much more time than they have, they may begin to feel guilty for not being able to complete the task, feel overwhelmed or burnt out. When you say, “This activity should take about three hours,” make sure the estimate is as correct as possible. Checklist feedback is very helpful in this area. Reps can tell you whether or not a task actually took the time you suggested it would. You can then readjust your expectations based on their feedback.
The GLP activities must be conservative enough in scope to be completed within a time frame that takes student schedules into account. Take into consideration how many hours you are expecting from the reps for the checklist period, or for the scope of the whole project if it extends over more than one checklist period.
Offer a Variety of Tasks
Offering a variety of tasks to reps may also help their time management because they will not begin to feel as though their time is being taken up by the same exact task over and over again.
Respect Students’ Schedules
Recognize that students’ first priority is their academics. There will probably be a time in the year that reps begin to feel personally overwhelmed—either with their own schoolwork, schedules, extra-curricular activities or other things. Try to avoid rep burn-out by reducing the load of work during the midterm period. Sometimes this is hard to do if midterms are spread out over many weeks for various classes.
The best approach is to expect the unexpected, realizing that you may need to be lenient on a rep once or twice throughout the year if they are having a very busy academic week. Have a personal meeting, if you can, with the rep to make sure they are on track, and encourage them to get back on track if they are not.
Teach by Example
Make sure that you, as a GLP captain or coordinator, are leading by example in the area of time management. Be on time to meetings and find a way to respond in a timely manner to reps’ questions and emails. If reps see that you are always running late or getting back to them after too long of a period, they will accept that as the status quo and keep a similar habit of arriving late to meetings or sending checklists or other work late.
Knowing When to Say "No"
It can feel overwhelming at times knowing how many activities your program could cover. It is tempting to try to do a little bit of something in every area; however, the GLP will be most effective if you have priorities and goals in finite areas, even if it means not tackling a particular issue in a particular year. You can always try it next year! It is best to start out strong with select areas, instead of spreading the program too thin.
Offer Help with Time Management Resources
Consider inviting time management experts to speak at your orientation, regular meetings or midyear training sessions to assist reps with this important skill. At the very least, you should know about the resources other offices on campus offer in the realm of time management so that you can point your reps in the right direction if they need help. For example, offices like Harvard's Bureau of Study Counsel or other advising departments can probably offer help with time management.