Coming to college is a huge transition, and one of the things I was least prepared for was the abundance of time I have on my hands. In high school, my days often started with a club meeting before school even began. Then, I had an 8 hour school day, followed by practice. The vast majority of the time, I wasn’t home until 6 p.m. at which point, I showered, ate dinner, did homework, and went to bed ready to do it all again tomorrow.

In high school, people were holding me accountable. My school tracked my attendance. My coach knew if I wasn’t at practice. My parents were around to make sure I was doing my homework. This isn’t to say that I wasn’t accountable to myself. I took care of my responsibilities, but there was structure provided for me.

In college, that doesn’t exist. The only thing you have to go to is class. Eh, maybe… if the professor takes attendance. You aren’t playing the sports you grew up playing. You aren’t going to club meetings. Even if you are going to class, it lasts maybe 4 hours per day.

Suddenly, first-semester-me was thrown into this structure lacking world and after a while, I felt like I was losing my mind. Not using my talent, time, and energy to the extent I had in high school was making me miserable.

Around Thanksgiving, I learned a few things that helped me to make more of my time, and regain my sanity.

1. Join clubs, as many or as few as you want. Find things you are passionate about and throw yourself into them.
2. Create a structure for your day to day life. Like I said, there’s nobody to do it for you anymore, and trust me, you need some amount of structure to keep your head on your shoulders.
3. Figure out what hours of the day are the most productive for you and make the most of them.

Let me give you a little run down of my day to day schedule just so you have an idea of where I’m coming from.

7:15 am- My alarm goes off. I brush my teeth and wash my face, throw on my gym clothes, and make my way down to the bus stop where I take the first bus to the gym. I eat breakfast at the dining hall right outside the gym and then get my workout in (which varies depending on the day).

9:30(ish) am- I take the bus back to my dorm where I shower, pick up my room, and sit down to get some work done.

10:30(ish) am-12:00 pm- This is a very key part of my day. From the time I get showered from the gym until I have to go to class, I get a lot of work done. I have a lot going on--taking classes, running a YouTube channel, and working for two publications-- which gives me a lot of deadlines to meet. What I’ve found works best for me is to spend my time doing whatever is due next. If I am picking and choosing which assignment to spend my time on, I find myself procrastinating school work to do the more “fun work” of editing YouTube videos and writing articles.

12:20-2:15 pm- Class

2:15 pm- Lunch

3:00(ish) pm- This is the time I usually get back to my room. I have different class times and meetings after class depending on the day, but it’s generally around here. This is where I have created a huge shift in my schedule since first semester. It’s our (or at least my) tendency to get home after a day of classes and want to take a nap or lounge around and watch Netflix. Instead, I’ve trained myself to use this time to work on whatever needs to be done. I find that I am the most productive in the morning and in the early afternoon, so these are the times I push myself to get the most done.

Afternoon-Early Evening: Depending on the day, I usually have a meeting or event (or two or three) in the evening. On Monday it’s sorority chapter, on Tuesday it’s Relay For Life, etc. I use these meetings (and dinner) as my study breaks. During this time, I get to see friends, take a break from my desk, and give my brain a little rest.

7:00(ish)-9:00 pm: 7:00 is usually when I get back to my room for the night and this chunk of time is the last big push of work for my day. Here’s the kicker: I put away all my work at 9:00 pm. That’s right. 9:00. All work. Away. Done. Not Touched until morning.

This is another huge shift in my schedule that I made. I’ve never been a night owl. Me doing homework past midnight in high school typically resulted in tears of frustration and pure exhaustion. I have friends that thrive in the late hours of the light and that’s when they get the most work done, but that isn’t me. The point here is this: figure out which hours are the most productive for you and make the most of them. For me, that’s 7:15 am to 9:00 pm. For my friend Paige, that’s 8 pm to 4 am, so maybe for her, a nap after class is a better use of her time.

9:00 pm- I wash my face and brush my teeth, and wind down for bed. Typically, this means journaling and reading a book, maybe watching some Netflix, and meditating. I aim to be asleep by 10:00, but obviously, some days are later than others. I am the type of person that needs 8+ hours of sleep to function the next day. Again, find out what works for you and do that.

This is just my schedule. It is by no means the end all be all guide to follow. The point I hope to be taken from this is to use the strategies and techniques that I did to create a day that works the best for you. There are countless variations of what this could look like, and it’s going to be unique to each person, but once you find your fit, you’ll be killin' the game and on your way to becoming the best version of you.