🌟 WORD OF THE DAY 20 Ṣafar, 1447 AH – August 14, 2025 ‘Time Management’ 🌟

Coach Ward

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

3-5 minute read

Definition:

Time management — the practice of planning, organizing, and intentionally controlling how you spend your hours, minutes, and even seconds to increase efficiency, productivity, and goal achievement.

Etymology:

The word time comes from the Old English tīma, meaning “a limited space of existence, season, or lifetime,” rooted in the Proto-Germanic tīmô.

The word management traces back to the Italian maneggiare (“to handle, especially a horse”), from Latin manus (“hand”), later evolving to mean “the act of directing or controlling” in the 16th century. Together, time management literally means “handling one’s allotted span of time.”

Time management: the invisible hand that decides whether you’re the captain of your day… or a passenger in your own schedule.

For years, I ran my days like a buffet, piling my plate high with tasks, projects, and dreams… then staring at the mountain, wondering why I couldn’t finish it all. I worked hard, but without a system, the hours slipped away. I thought I had a productivity problem, but really, I had a time allocation problem.

Why Time Management Matters

Time management is not about doing more things, it’s about doing the right things at the right time. Without it:

• Projects stall.

• Opportunities expire.

• Stress levels rise, even when you’re “busy.”

Great time managers don’t just work; they direct their work like a conductor leading an orchestra, ensuring each task comes in on cue.

The Price of Poor Time Management

When you manage time poorly:

• Important tasks get sacrificed for urgent, but unimportant, distractions.

• Your day becomes reactive instead of proactive.

• Your long-term goals drown under short-term fires.

And here’s the harsh truth, your results are rarely about effort alone. They’re about strategic effort over time.

How to Master It

1. Plan Your Priorities: Begin each day knowing your top 3 tasks.

2. Time Block: Give each activity a scheduled home in your calendar.

3. Eliminate Thieves: Remove time-wasters disguised as “productive” work.

4. Review Daily: End your day by asking, “Did my actions match my priorities?”

💡 Final Thought:

Time is the only resource you can’t earn back. Manage it well, and you gain freedom. Manage it poorly, and you’ll always feel poor, no matter your bank balance.

Let’s keep growing, one word at a time!