Finals week is stressful for everybody, but it's especially stressful if you struggle with time management. We all procrastinate from time to time. I am actually procrastinating writing a paper as I am writing this article! However, during my time in the International Baccalaureate program and throughout the past three semester at college, I've learned some useful tips to help me motivate myself, manage my time effectively, and stop procrastinating.
One of the most important tips for time management is allotting yourself a good chunk of time every day to just complete work. You don't have to determine what work you're going to do during that time, just say that you're going to get something done. If you schedule in exactly what assignment you're going to work on at what time, it might actually make your procrastination worse. If you don't feel like working on a particular assignment, you might just ignore it and wait until your next scheduled item and waste even more time. Scheduling time to work, while still giving yourself the freedom to choose what assignments you want to work on, is a great way to manage time effectively.
In those scheduled work times, you also must be sure to take breaks. I always set goals for myself as a measure of when I can take a break. Something like this: "Once I finish this paragraph, I'll give myself half an hour to use the bathroom and watch an episode of The Office." That way, I'm still accomplishing work and giving myself time to relax and free my mind from whatever assignment I've been working on. Breaks usually help me to clear my thoughts and reassess my assignment with a more focused mind and new ideas.
If you're a super anxious person like I am, another helpful method for calming yourself and becoming more productive during study time is meditation. I've been using the app Headspace for about two weeks now, and it's completely changed the way I think about and experience anxious thoughts. Headspace allows you to take ten minutes out of your day to calm down and experience your thoughts in a relaxed and non-judgmental manner. If anxiety is something you struggle with and it inhibits your time management, I highly recommend trying Headspace or any form of meditation.
Those are just some quick tips for managing your time more effectively. I hope they help - best of luck studying!
