Time management coaching for students is one-on-one help to plan the week, estimate how long work takes, start tasks on time and stop deadlines from sneaking up. Blackburn pairs each high school or college student with one dedicated mentor who builds a planning system with them and checks in between sessions, by video anywhere in the United States or in person in Los Angeles.
Who time management coaching is for
Students and parents usually reach out when a busy schedule has stopped working. Common signs:
- Work gets done, but always at the last minute and often late at night.
- Big projects and papers are started the day before they are due.
- A student who is overscheduled with sports, a job or activities and keeps falling behind.
- A student who underestimates how long everything takes, a pattern often called time blindness.
- A college student with open blocks of time and no structure to fill them.
- A teen or young adult with ADHD who needs an outside system and a person to check in with.
Time management coaching is not tutoring and not treatment. If anxiety, depression or an untreated attention concern is the main issue, a licensed professional should come first, and coaching can work alongside that care. In a crisis, call or text 988.
What coaching looks like week to week
- One dedicated mentor. The same person every week, matched to the student’s personality and schedule.
- A weekly planning session. Every class, shift, practice and deadline goes into one calendar, then the open time is planned, often with time blocking.
- Realistic estimates. The student guesses how long tasks will take, tracks the real time and adjusts. This one habit changes a lot.
- Starting, not just planning. Strategies for the first five minutes, the hardest part. Some students use body doubling with their mentor on video.
- Check-ins between sessions. Short texts or calls at the times that usually slip. See support between sessions.
- Sessions that fit. Sessions are usually 60 minutes, weekly or several times a week. Cost is reviewed on the free intro call.
Our free weekly planner for students is the same tool many mentors use in sessions.
High school and college look different
High school students
High school days are scheduled for them, so the hard part is after school: homework, practice, a job and a phone. Coaching focuses on a steady after-school routine and planning ahead for tests and projects. See time management for teens. New to the idea? Start with what coaching is and how it works.
College students
College gives far more free time and far less structure. Coaching focuses on turning a syllabus into a calendar, protecting study blocks and keeping a sleep schedule that holds. See time management for college students.
How it differs from apps and planners
Most students have tried a planner or an app. The tools are fine; what is missing is someone who sits down with them every week, notices what slipped and helps them adjust without judgment. That is what turns a planner into a habit.
- Executive function coaching: covers time management plus organization, task starting and working memory. Read about executive function coaching.
- Accountability coaching: focuses on following through on chosen goals of any kind. See accountability coaching.
How parents are involved
For high school students, parents receive regular progress updates on the weekly plan and how it is going. For college students, updates are shared only with the student’s permission. Either way, the student owns the system, because a plan they built is a plan they are more likely to use.
A sample planning session
A first session usually starts with a brain dump: every class, assignment, practice, shift and commitment the student can think of. Next, the fixed items go into a calendar. Then the student looks at what is left and estimates how long each task will take, writing the guess down. The mentor helps break big tasks into pieces that fit into real time blocks, such as “write the introduction” instead of “write the paper.”
The next week, they compare the guesses with what actually happened. Most students find their estimates are off by a lot at first. That is not a failure; it is the most useful information in the whole process, and it is how planning gets more accurate week by week.
What happens after you reach out
- A short assessment. The assessment takes about five minutes. It tells us about the student, the main goals and what the weekly schedule looks like.
- A free 20-minute intro call. A member of our team hosts the call by video in your browser, weekdays 9 to 5 Pacific. You can also book it directly on the intro call page. We talk through fit, scheduling and cost; we do not publish prices, so cost is reviewed on this call.
- A mentor match within 2 business days. After the call, we match the student with one dedicated mentor and set the first session. Mentors offer early morning, evening and weekend times.
Students in Los Angeles County can also see executive function coaching in Los Angeles, which covers planning around LA drive times.
Related
- How to stop procrastinating
- Why teens procrastinate and how parents can help
- Mentoring and accountability for students with ADHD
- How mentoring works
Common questions
Who is time management coaching for?
High school students, college students and young adults who struggle with planning, deadlines and getting started, including students with ADHD.
How is this different from a planner app?
An app holds the plan. A mentor helps build it every week, checks in between sessions and adjusts it when something slips.
How long before we see a difference?
Many students show early changes within the first few weeks, such as fewer late assignments. Building a habit that lasts usually takes a few months of steady sessions.
Can coaching happen online?
Yes. Sessions are by video anywhere in the United States, and in person in Los Angeles, with early morning, evening and weekend times available.
Do parents get updates?
Parents of high school students receive regular progress updates. For college students, updates are shared only with the student’s permission.
Get started
Want to talk through whether time management coaching fits your student? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.
Free, by video, 20 minutes, with a member of our team. Weekdays 9 to 5 Pacific.