Time is a commodity we all have in common. Each of us has 168 hours in a week to work with. Our success depends on how we can manage and utilise this time to our best advantage. Peter Drucker had correctly summed it up when he said – “Until we can manage time we can manage nothing else”. Today many students find it hard to manage time effectively all the more before the exams, as they are simultaneously trying to juggle academic work such as classes, multiple assignments, unfinished project work along with extra - curricular activities. Those who master the art of time management turn out to be the real winners. 
 Some effective strategies to help manage your time better have been discussed here, these if incorporated will not only help you to effectively manage time before your exams but leave you more organised, prepared and confident to face the exams head on.
Set Goals 
 Set academic goals  for yourself and a timeline to achieve them in. It can be anything like: I will finish five Chemistry chapters this week. Having goals will make it easier to look straight and move ahead. You can have multiple goals for different subjects. Once the goal is set put up visual reminders in the form of post-it’s so you can’t ignore them.
Set SMART goals which are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely.
 Prioritize
Set  your priorities based on the goals you have set yourself. Your priorities can also be governed by your exam schedule which will dictate the subjects you need to prepare before the others. While prioritizing use the four D’s
Do - what is urgent.
Delegate – What you need not do yourself.
Delay – set deadlines for already delayed work to be completed within deadlines.
Delete – work that is not consistent with your goals. 
 Create a TO DO LIST
 This is a daily planner which has all the tasks to be completed in a day with a hour wise break- up. It helps you to keep a track of when to complete what and if you can stick to it, you would have accomplished your daily goal. Similarly you can also have weekly planners. Keep the planner simple and practical leaving time for all the other activities that you need to do.
Interruptions
 Factor in interruptions while preparing the daily to do list. This gives you the flexibility to handle these without getting unduly stressed out or upset. Also lay down rules about study time and ask other family members to help you adhere to them.
 Time  wasters 
 Always factor in the time wasters while creating you daily or weekly planner. As all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. So it is okay to factor in 15 minutes of TV or music time after an hour of concentrated study or on completion of a difficult assignment. Remember there is no harm in taking a short break from time to time it will help you to concentrate better.
Planning your study time
Peak times – Tackle difficult subjects at your peak energy times. 
Fill Gaps – Use small tasks to fill in the small windows of time during the day.
 A difficult subject should be followed by a relatively easier one. Fit in your project work or practical file  work in between when you are relaxing and listen to music while doing it. This will remove the tediousness from continuous hard work.
 Even after you have taken all these steps to enable you to effectively manage your time, there are still certain obstacles which have to be kept in mind - such as ownership of time,  multitasking, forgetting to address the “time wasters”, unclear objectives, disorganized workspace and clutter, inability to say no, stress and fatigue. Once these can be addressed properly you are almost halfway to the finish line way ahead of the others. So what’s holding you back GET SET and GO……