Time Management in College

I personally think one of the hardest parts about college is time management. You are now in charge of your own schedule, no one is telling you where to be and when to be there. That means no one is forcing you to go to class, write your paper, work out, etc. Here are my tips for staying on top of your studies while still managing to have a little fun.

6 Tips on Time Management in College

1) Have a planner/agenda/calendar

Honestly, I can't stress enough how valuable a planner is in college. In one quick glance you can see when your next biology exam is, your dinner date with a friend later this week, and oh yeah-your mom's birthday is next week, better buy her a card. I personally use the Erin Condren Life Planner which I love, but a cheap $10 agenda from Target will most the time do just as good of a job. Anything that keeps you on top of your schedule and that you can easily carry around with you will do.

2) Have a daily to-do list

Even better, write it out the night beforehand. That way you have a clear plan of attack for the following day and you won't forget anything. You can put this in your planner, on a Post-It note, in your phone, wherever. As long as you can reference it throughout the day and cross things off as you go. Nothing feels better than having all of your tasks accomplished for the day and seeing all those checkmarks.

3) Assign a time limit to your tasks

I'm all for taking a quick 20 minute study break to check Facebook but sometimes that 20 minutes turns into an hour...So set time limits for your tasks. Study for thirty minutes, then schedule in a 20 minute break. Give yourself two hours to grab dinner and catch up with a friend. And so on...An easy way to visualize this would be to create your own personalized time table/schedule. I have a post on how to easily create your own right here.

4) Create a routine

Having a set routine is going to streamline your day and make things go a lot smoother. If you know what you should be doing at any given time of day it's going to make it easier to refocus and actually do it. Waking up at the same time each morning really helps to establish a routine. That way you're not dragging yourself out of bed for your 8:00 AM class on Tuesday and wasting valuable time before your first class of the day at 10:00 AM on Thursday. A before bed routine also helps to alleviate stress the next day. Set out your outfit and accessories, pack your lunch, put everything into your backpack/school bag/purse and see how easy your mornings become! Remember that having a routine will help a lot but there will always be hiccups and things that come up unexpectedly, go with the flow and accommodate life's unexpected annoyances.

5) Stop procrastinating

Let's be honest, we're all guilty of this. But putting off that essay or semester long project isn't going to do you any favors. Start small, and spend just 10 minutes a day on large projects like that and gradually increase the time as a deadline gets closer. While some people work better under pressure, it's hard to fake a semester long project in just a few days or hours. This also includes staying off of social networks. If it's time to study, don't even have Facebook, Twitter, etc. open in a seperate tab. It's too easy to get distracted and it's an easy way to procrastinate.

6) Set goals

Set weekly, monthly, yearly, and long term goals. Setting goals keeps you on track and makes you accountable for your time. Separating and splitting up goals into categories can help to make them not so daunting; personal, work, and academic are just some of the categories you can use. Setting goals is great, but you also need a system to accomplishing them. Break down larger, more long term goals into more manageable steps. Don't forget to reward yourself once you do accomplish your aspirations! Something to keep in mind when setting goals: