Now your young friend is working and perhaps also in school or training. He or she may also have family responsibilities and want to have a social life with friends. It’s important to keep up class work, even though a job has been added into the mix. The secret to doing the balancing act is not to waste time. Have your friend make a list of all the activities and how much time is spent doing them. This will give him or her the opportunity to see what is being accomplished and what time may be available.
Help the young person set up a weekly calendar with the entire schedule of all the obligations. Write everything in a calendar with pencil so dates and times can be changed if needed. Or use an electronic calendar on the computer like Microsoft Outlook.
Have your young person use the calendar until he or she is comfortable working this way. Then ask if it helped with getting everything done and maximizing the use of available time. Did it still allow some social and family time? We all need to relax and refresh ourselves to actually do the work. So it’s a balance between feeling productive and getting refreshed. Don’t forget to have your young friend use the measuring stick when judging whether to do an activity, “Will I care about this five years from now?"