Time management. We all know we should do it. Organize and prioritize our schedules and to-do lists to be as efficient and productive as possible. But like many things, it is easier said than done. Especially for college students. Just when you think you have everything figured out, you get slammed with a group project, get assigned a research paper due by the end of the week, have to study for a test, and are asked to spend the weekend with your friends. Doesn’t seem so easy any more, does it?
Think pulling an all-nighter for the test tomorrow will help? Think again, you’ll be too tired to focus during the exam. Considering bringing homework when you go out with your friends? Nope! You’ll be too busy with them to actually get work done. Want to drop out of college and find some other way to make a living? Are you kidding me!? You’ve spent too much time and money on your education to do that. So what can you do to better manage your time and still have a social life during your college career? While there is no universal answer, there are some different options, ranging from mapping out your schedule using pen and paper, to downloading an app for your phone.
If you are more if a visual person, try drawing an hour-by-hour chart of the day, for each day of the week. Fill in all of your weekly commitments, and then you can start budgeting time for other things such as homework, social time and whatever else you may want. If there are a lot of empty spaces during the day, maybe you could reconsider when you plan to do your homework do you don’t waste 45 minutes between classes doing nothing, complaining about being bored. If you are more productive in the morning, you may be able to wake up earlier, get work done without any distractions, then have the evenings to chill and hangout. This is also a good way to sort our your priorities. Do you really need 3-4 hours of "Netflix time" every day?
If you’re looking for a resource that can help you stay on track when you have a to-do list that is a mile long, then the ClearFocus app may be just what you are looking for. This app for Android devices lets you create a to-do list and assign how much time you want to spend on each task. When the time is up it will let you either take a break or move on to the next thing. This app even has a feature that you can turn on to prevent you from going to selected apps that may distract you from getting work done. iPhone users have a similar app for Apple devices called 30/30.
Whether you are using an app on your phone, a planner, or mapping out your daily schedule by hand, time management is going to be rough. But if you’re able to stay on top of everything, it’s almost a guarantee that you will be much happier and less stressed compared to being swamped with all the things you have to get done and not knowing where to start.
