Time Management: The Most Important School Supply

I don’t know about how everyone else feels, but high school was much easier than college. I am not talking about classes in particular, but more about how to manage your time. See, in high school, most classes were an hour long with no time in between. In college, however, there are 30-minute breaks here and there, sometimes an hour between, and sometimes no classes the whole day. It is easy to get caught up doing things like cleaning, watching Netflix, or deciding to do small tasks in those little breaks. How much easier would college be if you learned how to manage your time? All it takes to start managing your time is determination and this helpful list of ways to efficiently manage your time!

1. Many students see the opportunity to space out classes to take advantage of the daytime for activities, but many recommend that you block your courses instead. This doesn’t mean that you should block your instructors and avoid communication, it means to make your classes all one after another, much like high school classes. This gives you more free time at the end of the day to clean, do homework, and any other tasks that you wanted to complete in between classes.
2. Sit down at the table or desk that you have, turn off all distractions, and make a plan! Schedule your study time just as you schedule your classes to make sure you always do it. Treat this scheduled time like a class as well, because there is no way to pass a class without studying. A quality guide to follow is: 1 hour class=2 hour study time. This gives you an easy way to schedule and pass that class!
3. As college students, not many of us are morning people. Therefore, it is important to get to know your sleep schedule and what you prefer! If you like to be in bed by 9:00 p.m. but you wake up at 5:00 a.m. it is probably a good idea to utilize those hours before your first class as a study time. You can study for the classes that you have on that day, or do the homework from the previous day’s classes! If you prefer to be a night owl, I recommend not scheduling classes for first thing in the morning, as this will probably violate our next point!
4. I cannot stress this enough, GO TO CLASS! Missing a class because you simply don’t want to attend is an awful idea. You could miss out on important announcements, such as a change of homework or specific homework instructions! I know what you’re thinking, “Shayna, what about the pandemic that is keeping us from attending in-person classes?” and yes, I am aware of that. However, this won’t always be the norm. Right now, I recommend attending all your Zoom meetings! This brings up another important point, get ready for your Zoom classes! When you get out of bed and get dressed like you would for an in-person class, it basically tricks your brain into thinking you’re in class and makes it easier to pay attention!
5. As I said before, it is easier said than done when it comes to getting started. Many benefitted from keeping a log of how long it took to do their homework daily. This helped them when it came to scheduling for their day. Write down the time you started studying and the time you completed the homework and studying.
6. While you are studying, stay away from social media and things that have nothing to do with what you are trying to accomplish. Stay focused. If the urge is too strong to look at the Snapchat you just got, tell your friends that you are logging off for a while to focus on homework, and then put your devices in another room. I’m sure your friends have done the same thing before, so they will understand. Focus on the one thing you want to get done, then reward yourself at the end. Maybe call your friend, mom, or significant other. This will give you the incentive to finish the task, and finish it correctly.
7. This recommendation falls into the last as well. Many times other people think what they have going on is more important than anything you are trying to focus on. Whether it be your family planning a vacation, your boss who wants you to finish something at work tonight, or your cousin who wants to catch up when you come home, it is okay to tell them to leave! Don’t be afraid to make yourself heard and to tell everyone bothering you that you need to study hard for your finals. In the end, you want to get the education you are paying for and learn about the things you will be doing for the rest of your life.

Notebooks, pencils, pens, highlighters, and planners are all very important parts of your school supply list, but without time management skills, it will be very difficult to pass your classes. So, at the top of the school supply list, always have the ability to manage your time!