Don't Play With Your Time: Mastering Time Management.

Introduction

Once upon a time, there was a boy, Nana...
So today I’m going to tell you a story about a boy, Nana.

Nana sat at his desk, staring at his to-do list. It was a chaotic mess of unfinished tasks, missed deadlines, and half-hearted attempts at productivity. He sighed, scratching his head. Eii! Where did all the time go?

He had started the year with big goals. This was supposed to be his most productive year yet; no more procrastination, no more wasted time. But somehow, despite being busy every single day, he felt like he was getting nowhere. Sound familiar? Then follow along.

The Illusion of Busyness

Nana's days were packed. He answered emails, attended endless meetings, scrolled through social media for “just a few minutes” (which turned into an hour), and constantly switched between tasks. By evening, he was exhausted. But what had he actually accomplished? Not much.

Like Nana, many of us mistake activity for productivity. You ‘Doing’ isn’t You ‘Achieving’. The fact that you're doing something doesn't mean you're achieving or gonna achieve something. You should consider "What, How and When” you're doing. Being busy feels like we’re getting things done, but in reality, we're just running in circles. The problem isn’t a lack of time, it’s a lack of focus.

The Wake-Up Call

One evening, Nana’s friend, Adom, sent him a message:

"Hey, remember that online course I started? I just completed it and landed an internship!"

Nana stared at the message, not surprised, but felt wasted. They had both planned to take the course at the same time, but he never made it past the first module. He had wanted to finish it, but somehow, life kept getting in the way. Or at least, that’s what he told himself.

Frustrated, he decided to track his time for a week. The results were shocking. Hours lost to distractions, unnecessary meetings, mindless scrolling, and doing things that weren’t even urgent. If time was money, he had been spending his like a billionaire with no budget.

You! I guess that’s what you’re also doing. Hm! You better wake up and strengthen that which remains.

The Turning Point: Learning to Manage Time

Managing time shouldn’t be something difficult. It requires small effort(planning) and a lot of focus.
Determined to change, Nana researched time management strategies. He discovered a few key principles that changed everything, and he wants me to share with you.

1. The 80/20 Rule: Focus on What Matters Most

Nana learned that 80% of his results came from just 20% of his efforts. Instead of trying to do everything, he started identifying his most important tasks, the ones that would bring real progress. Instead of doing it all he started prioritizing. You have to define your own progress and prioritize accordingly.

2. Time Blocking: Controlling His Schedule

He stopped letting distractions control his day. Instead, he scheduled specific blocks of time for deep work, emails, breaks, studies, and even social media. If it wasn’t on his schedule, it wasn’t happening. Own your time or someone would purchase it for less.

3. The Two-Minute Rule: Stop Procrastinating

I’ll do it later. Haha! What if the ‘later’ never came? It truly would never come.
If a task took less than two minutes, he did it immediately. No more “I’ll do it later.” This small habit helped him clear unnecessary clutter from his to-do list. Note that any “I’ll do it later”, is plus one of the tasks that awaits you. 

4. The Power of Saying No

Nana realized he had been saying yes to too many things that didn’t align with his goals. He started setting boundaries, no more unnecessary meetings, no more distractions disguised as “urgent” tasks.

The Transformation

A few weeks later, everything started changing. Nana felt more in control of his time. He finally completed the online course, started exercising regularly, and even had time to rest without feeling guilty.

He wasn’t just busy anymore - he was productive.

Your Turn

Now enough talk about Nana. Now onto you.
Listen!
Nana’s story isn’t unique. We all have the same 24 hours in a day, but how we use them makes all the difference. Time management isn’t about squeezing more into your day; it’s about making sure your time is spent on what truly matters.

So ask yourself: Where is your time really going? And what are you going to do about it?
I rest my case. Thank you!

Thanks for reading!
I am Nana Boadzi, I share knowledge through stories.
This is Career & Growth Flight—see you in the next one!