The one equalizing factor in this world is time. We all have twenty-four hours in the day; no more, no less. Successful educators are masters at managing time. They have just as much to do as everyone else, but they (somehow) are able to complete their agendas in the given amount of time. Whats their secret? Many of us have come to associate busy with productive. It is certainly true, we can be busy and productive, but are we sometimes "busy" doing the tasks that are best suited for our talents? Do we prioritize and assign ourselves the teacher-only responsibilities or do we get caught in that undertow of escape activities?

There is one person in your organization who must-know-the-score (no pun intended). YOU are the designated individual; therefore rehearsal preparation must be at the top of your to-do list. Stuffing folders and setting up the chairs and stands for rehearsal can be accomplished by a student manager or a select group of student leaders. Consequently if you catch yourself using your time to do something that could easily be assumed by your students, simply STOP and review your priorities. Take the time o teach someone else the right way to prepare music folders and properly set up the equipment for the upcoming rehearsal. The benefits are twofold; the students embrace more ownership of the ensembles success, and YOU are now free to focus your time on learning-the-musical-score.

If it is such a simple process, why dont we apply it to every aspect of our profession? Why do we often find ourselves in a state of urgency, or always rushing to meet the given deadline? Being a full-fledged member of the not-enough-time club, I have devoted time to the research of time management. After much study it is painfully clear; the problem is me.

According to the experts we sidestep effective prioritizing for two basic reasons:

1. Doing the less-challenging duties helps us avoid the disappointment we experience in unknown territory. In other words (to stay with our score-study example), it is more comfortable and less taxing to stuff folders and organize music stands than it is to analyze the thematic material of a new composition. We arent as likely to fail or feel as inadequate; its a shallow attempt to feed our sense-of-accomplishment, but the impact is short-lived. Avoidance is a human condition; its not that we dont know what to do, its that we dont want to do it, so we look for opportunities that will divert our focus and still keep us busy. Our fear-of-incompetence will convince us we would be wasting time if we committed ourselves to a lengthy examination of the compositional aspects of the musical score. As a result of this rationalization we end up with a group of people sitting attentively in a rehearsal, with chairs and stands neatly in place, using up valuable time because the conductor, lacking a workable knowledge of the music, is not prepared to lead the ensemble.
2. If we complete all the work there is to do, we become dispensable...we arent needed; therefore we must ensure we have a long list of responsibilities yet-to- accomplish. Psychology 101: A basic human desire is to feel a sense of need. If we finish everything, what will we do? Maybe we wont be needed; therefore if we continue to add to our list of responsibilities while refusing to address the present problems, we increase the security of our position. Subconsciously we really fear completion for it jeopardizes our very existence. Of course the irony is, the moment we finish one project, two new ones appear instantly. Every master teacher knows, the more we do, the more there is to do. It is impossible to arrive at the finite-end simply because we continue to create more during the process-of-completion.

The review of these two described conditions suggests we are at the effect of our own choices. If so, we then have the wherewithal to shift our emphasis and dedicate our time, effort, and energy to areas where we can have a more beneficial impact on our programs.

Acclaimed author and time-management consultant, Stephen R. Covey, offers several suggestions we can easily tailor to our teaching forums. The following check-list is adaptation designed to accommodate the music teacher in the positive administration of a healthy program. Before investing your personal time in any future activity, take a moment to review these important questions. It will be a valuable use of your time.

1. What needs to be done right now? What has to be accomplished immediately to meet a deadline and avoid a crisis situation?
2. Does the task require personal attention or can it be assigned? If it can be delegated to a responsible person, do so and move ahead to the next responsibility.
3. Is the energy being used within a personal sphere-of-influence to produce a positive result? Beware spinning your wheels; dont waste time if you dont sense forward motion.
4. Is there an alternative way to create better results? Beware the weve always done it this way, pattern-of-thinking.
5. Does it feed the mission-of-excellence? If it does not, dont do it.

No, this prioritizing-template will not solve every problem, but it will clear up much of the confusion that prevents us from making logical choices about the investment of our time. It is also brings with it a tone-of-honesty so we arent tempted to believe we dont have enough time.

During my college years I was earning some extra revenue by playing with a jazz quartet with two of my music-major friends and an older gentleman who was an innately gifted pianist. His many years of playing on the road provided a library of fascinating mentoring material for the three of us. While he imparted priceless wisdom during those much anticipated breaks between sets, his best advice was his predictable mantra, Time! Its all about time. It was, it is, it always will be.