How to make time for what matters: The ultimate guide to managing your time like a pro.
- Ashiq Ibrahim
- Feb 7
- 7 min read
“I’ll start in 5 minutes. (5 minutes later…)
Maybe in 10. (30 minutes later…)”
Before you know it, distractions take over. You’re scrolling, watching, doing anything but studying.
Then suddenly—BAM. It’s the end of the day.
“Wait… how the hell did time fly by so fast?! I got nothing done.” —You think to yourself…
The above scenario? Way too common.
For students. For professionals. For anyone who’s ever procrastinated themselves into a corner.
Why does it happen? Simple: Poor time management.
Because let’s be real—no one teaches you how to manage your time.
Yet, every student gets the same 24 hours. Some use them to get ahead. Others… cram the night before.
So what separates the ones who ace their exams from the ones who panic at 2 AM?
Time management.
The ones who win? They struggle daily—putting in an hour or two every day.
The ones who lose? They struggle all at once.
One week before the exam.
Or worse—the night before.
Why does this happen? And how do you make sure you’re on the right side of this equation?
That’s exactly what this guide is about.
Ready? Let’s go.
Table of contents: Managing your time like a pro.
What is time management?
Schedule your life — No more restless nights.
Track where the time goes — Prevent the after-exam woes.
Brutal honesty: What would your Ancestors (or Future kids) think?
Deep work = Real Work
The Pomodoro Technique
Block the pointless — Make Progress.
Before we begin, we need to answer the question:
What is time management?
Time management isn’t about grinding 24/7. It’s about making time for what actually matters—studying, work, family, friends, rest, and whatever fuels your growth.
The difference between someone who parties and procrastinates until the night before an exam, and someone who lives fully while still crushing their studies?
One manages their time. The other lets time manage them.
If you’re tired of scrambling at the last minute, this guide will change the game for you.
Schedule Your Life – Goodbye Restless Nights.
Calendars. Your secret weapon. If there’s ONE habit you take from this guide—it’s using a calendar.
How to Get Started?
One simple method: Time Blocking.
What is Time Blocking?
It’s carving out dedicated time for a specific activity—where during that time, you do only that.
📚 Studying? Block time for it in your schedule.
🛑 No distractions, no scrolling, no multitasking.
Why Does This Work?
Most people say they’ll study “later” … and later never comes. But when something is scheduled at a specific time & place, you’re far more likely to commit.
Your schedule shouldn’t be a wish list. It should be a contract with yourself.
Make It a Routine
Don’t just schedule study sessions. Build a daily rhythm.
⏰ Wake up at the same time.
🌙 Sleep at the same time.
💡 Schedule your deep work sessions. (More on that below)
When your life follows a structured routine, you eliminate mental chaos. You stop waking up thinking, “What do I do today?”—because your schedule already tells you.
🚨 Bonus Fun Fact:
Live consistently enough, and your body will even start sending you to the bathroom at the same time each day. (Yep, routines run deep.)
Track Where Your Time Goes – Prevent the After-Exam Woes
Ever reached the end of the day wondering, “Where the hell did all my time go?”
One word: Tracking.
If you don’t measure it, you won’t improve it.
The Best Tool for the Job?
🌱 Forest.
This simple app shows you exactly how your time is being spent.
Are you actually studying? Or are you just fooling yourself?
How to Use Forest to Get Your Time Back:
1️⃣ Download it. (Duh.)
2️⃣ Choose a category before each activity.
• 📖 Studying? Set it as “Study.”
• 🎮 Doom-scrolling? Set it as “Entertainment.”
• 💤 Napping? Set it as “Rest.”
By the end of the day, you’ll see exactly where your time went.
And once you know, you can fix it. But only if you are brutally honest with yourself.
Tracking your time forces you to be honest. No more excuses, no more “I don’t know how all that time just flew by!”
Be Brutally Honest With Yourself – No More Lies
Now that you have begun tracking how you spend your time, you can get real with yourself.
At the end of each day, you need to face the facts. Not sugarcoat, not make excuses—just facts.
Ask Yourself This:
✅ Did I actually make progress today?
✅ Where did I fumble?
✅ What can I do better tomorrow?
Why Brutal Honesty is the Key to Winning
📌 If you don’t track your failures, you’ll never fix them.
Every night, take 10 minutes to reflect.
Write it down, voice record it, do whatever it takes to stay accountable.
Then, act on it.
✔️ Did you waste hours scrolling? → Block that app tomorrow.
✔️ Did you avoid studying? → Set a fixed time block in your calendar.
✔️ Did you feel distracted? → Use deep work techniques.
Small adjustments every day lead to huge improvements over time.
💡 Brutal honesty = the fastest way to level up. No more guessing, no more self-delusion.
Deep Work is the Real Work – No More “Fake Productivity”
Let’s cut the crap.
Just because you feel busy doesn’t mean you’re actually getting anything done.
This is what I call Fake Productivity—where you trick yourself into thinking you’re working hard, but deep down, you know you’re just going through the motions.
Example?
✔️ Highlighting notes endlessly but not recalling a single fact.
✔️ Watching study videos but never applying what you learn.
✔️ Jumping between five different tasks but never finishing even one.
You know when you’re actually working, and when you’re just faking it.
So What’s the Fix? Deep Work.
Deep work is the complete opposite of fake productivity.
It’s when you’re in a flow state, fully locked in on ONE thing—no distractions, no multitasking, just pure, focused execution.
🚀 Deep Work = Less Time, More Results
When you actually focus, you can get 8 hours of scattered work done in just 2-3 hours.
How to Start Doing Deep Work Today
✔️ Set a Time Block – Choose a specific start & end time for deep work.
✔️ No Notifications – Turn off your phone, block distractions, and commit.
✔️ One Task Only – No multitasking. Focus on just one thing.
✔️ Respect the Session – Treat it like an unbreakable meeting with yourself.
Do this, and you’ll level up faster than 99% of people still stuck in the illusion of “Fake Productivity.”
🔥 This is why deep work is the real work. No excuses. No half-measures. Just results.
The Pomodoro Technique – Work Smarter, Not Harder
Struggling to focus for long periods? Your brain keeps checking the time every 5 minutes?
🚨 Meet the Pomodoro Technique – The Ultimate Brain Hack.
What is the Pomodoro Technique?
Your brain hates open-ended tasks.
If you say, “I’ll study for 5 hours today,” your brain will resist. HARD.
But if you say, “Just 25 minutes, then I get a break,” suddenly, it feels manageable. Your brain sees a reward after effort.
This anticipation of a break helps you focus by increasing motivation. That. is what the Pomodoro Technique is about.
How to Start Pomodoro Right Now
✔️ Pick one task – No multitasking.
✔️ Set a 25-minute timer – Lock in. No distractions.
✔️ Take a 5-minute break – Reward yourself (but don’t get carried away).
✔️ Repeat – After 3-4 sessions, take a 10-15 minute break.
🎯 Pro Tip: If 25 minutes is too short, experiment with 50-minute focus blocks + 10-minute breaks. Find what works for YOU.
Bottom Line?
Pomodoro helps you trick your brain into working longer by making it feel shorter.
🔹 Struggle with procrastination? Pomodoro.
🔹 Feel overwhelmed by long study sessions? Pomodoro.
🔹 Want to get more done in less time? You already know.
💥 Try it today and see how your focus skyrockets.
Blocking the Pointless to Make Progress – The Power of AppBlock
Ever caught yourself mindlessly opening social media, YouTube, Netflix—without even thinking?
One second you’re checking your phone, the next you’re an hour deep into doom scrolling or “just one more episode” mode.
This habit is a MASSIVE productivity killer.
The Deadly “Mindless Click” Cycle
Here’s how it happens:
✔️ You instinctively unlock your phone.
✔️ Your brain, out of pure habit, taps an app.
✔️ Suddenly, you’re scrolling. And scrolling. And scrolling…
✔️ 30 minutes gone. Then an hour. And now your entire schedule is wrecked.
This “mindless click” cycle is what destroys time.
You don’t even realize you’re wasting time until it’s already gone.
The Solution: AppBlock (Your Digital Guardian)
💡 What if your favorite distraction… just didn’t open?
That’s where AppBlock comes in.
AppBlock disrupts the cycle by stopping you from opening time-wasting apps.
🔹 No app = no scroll = no wasted time.
🔹 It forces you to pause and think: “Wait, do I really need to open this?”
🔹 Break the habit before it even starts.
How to Set Up AppBlock Like a Pro
1️⃣ Identify your biggest distractions. Be honest—what do you waste time on?
2️⃣ Set strict blocks. Example: No social media from 9 AM – 7 PM.
3️⃣ Enable strict mode. This prevents you from unblocking apps when willpower is weak.
4️⃣ Use a “whitelist” approach. Allow only essential apps like notes, email, and calendar.
Why Prevention is Always Easier Than Cure
Ever tried stopping doom scrolling after you’ve already started? Nearly impossible.
🚀 But if the app doesn’t open in the first place? Game over.
That’s why blocking distractions BEFORE they hijack your focus is the ultimate cheat code for productivity.
You don’t need more willpower. You need fewer distractions.
Block the apps. Block the mindless clicks. Block the wasted time.
More focus. More progress. More results.
🔥 Want a full breakdown on how to eliminate distractions? Stay tuned for a dedicated post!
Final Thoughts: Transform Your Time, Transform Your Life
These 6 strategies were the game-changers that took me from wasting time to owning every single hour of my day.
Manage your time like a pro, and you’ll see everything change.
✔️ Stress drops.
✔️ Productivity skyrockets.
✔️ Grades go from failing to straight A*s.
✔️ You go from struggling to succeeding.
The secret? One step at a time. Small improvements, every single day, stack up into massive results.
Your Turn: Let’s Make This a Conversation
🔹 Which of these strategies clicked with you the most?
🔹 Got your own time management tricks? Drop them in the comments!
I’d love to hear from you—let’s learn from each other and keep growing.
Know Someone Struggling with Time Management?
💡 Share this post.
Help them go from wasting time to mastering it.
👉 Send them my website. If they’re struggling with exams, I can help them turn things around—fast.
Let’s level up, together.
Thank You.
Ashiq Ibrahim
Founder of FailToA
🔥 More game-changing guides coming soon—stay tuned!
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