Time Managment

One of the most important things to learn in life is how to best manage your time.  Although there will always be moments when time gets away from you, good habits can ensure that happens less often. 

The Basics

See the whole picture: If you only have one class and no other obligations in life, time management is easy.  Since this is never the case, its important to know what is coming and what's due when.  Use the syllabus from each of your classes to start the process.

Use a calendar:  Use your phone, computer, paper calendar, or daily planner to organize what you have to do.  Whichever one you choose, make that the place that everything gets written down.  Make it a routine.  If a date gets pushed back or moved forward or something gets added, put in the calendar. 

Schedule play and relaxation: You will find that the days can go by fast, especially the ones that you don't have classes.  If you are keeping a schedule, really keep one.  Schedule when you will do homework, work on projects, exercise, socialize, sleep, do laundry, etc.  This may seem a bit extreme, but a lot of your time at college is unstructured, which means, you can end up doing a whole lot of nothing.  Scheduling things in allows you to learn how to best structure and use your time.  It doesn't have to be down to the minute, but having an idea about when you will do or not do something can be very helpful. 

Be flexible: What worked for you before, may not work for you now.  This is true for the high school to college transition as well as semester to semester or year to year.  With new classes there are new teachers and new styles to adapt to.  Knowing ahead of time that you may need to tweak what you've done helps keep the stress levels lower because you will be more willing to try new things when the old ways aren't working. Being flexible helps you from feeling stuck. 

Break big projects into smaller chunks: It's easy to only think of when something is due instead of all the work that goes into getting the assignment done.  When you have a bigger project due, break it down into to smaller pieces and schedule when you are going to do those pieces.  This way, you are less likely to feel overwhelmed as the due date approaches.  

The most important part of planning: Get in the habit of asking yourself, "When am I going to get this done?"  Whether you choose the date and time or it is dictated to you, it is important to have a deadline or a good plan of when you can complete something.  Once you figure out the answer the question, write it down in your planner. 

***For more tips, read below.****

Time Management for Non-Traditional Students

"Non-traditional" students used to mostly mean an older student.  Today it can mean many more things.  You more be a little older, you may need to work full time while going to school, you may be supporting yourself, supporting a family, or dealing with a chronic illness.  Regardless of the situation, time management may look a little different for a non-traditional student though the basics are the same. Below are some other pieces to think about. 

Be realistic: You can't do everything.  Know what's most important, what you need to do, what can be done later and what someone else can do.  It's also important to be realistic about how much you can take on.  Sometimes we have too much on our plate.  When we realize this, be willing to put some things on hold or get rid something that can't be done right now.  

Use what you know: If you have more energy in the morning, schedule the bulk of your tasks then.  If you are better in the evening, schedule them then.  If you know that other appointments, obligations need to happen at certain times, schedule your work before or after.  If you tend to get fatigued at a certain time, schedule in breaks. Pay attention to yourself. 

Grab the moments: Sometimes we can feel like time is being wasted by other things.  Waiting in lines or at a doctor's office.  These are perfectly good times to do some reading or studying or even planning for a paper.  Kids are playing and don't really need you to interact?  Bring work to the playground.  Have homework time for everyone, you do yours while the kids do theirs. It also means grab the moments when you can take your breaks too.  Play with the kids, read something for fun, make dinner, sleep.  

Your best does not always mean perfect: Sometimes we can't get things done the way we want to.  If we can accept this, then we can learn how to compromise and do our best, even if it isn't how we would do it if we had the ideal situation.  You'd be surprised how this knowledge helps manage time. 

Prepare others for the really difficult times: Mid-terms, finals, end of the semester, whenever or whatever are going to be the most stressful times, prepare others and yourself.  Inform people that there will be a finite time when you will have to spend more time on school and less on other things.  This doesn't have to mean ignoring all other things, but it does mean you may not be able to wash the dishes or get some laundry done or even be as attentive as you normally would in relationships.  Give yourself permission for this and prepare others in your life. A few days of not worrying about cleaning or other smaller details can help alleviate some stress and give you more time to focus on those last tasks of school. 

Balance: Balance is not equal proportions of everything, its knowing when you have too much of something or not enough of something else and trying to adjust. If all of your focus has been on school and taking care of others and you're neglecting yourself, it's time to give yourself some time.  If you've been neglecting school work or a paper, you need to get back on track.

Learn to say "No": You're going to school, working, dealing with stresses in life while you're doing all these things, and on top of it people want and need you to do things.  We may feel guilty we're not paying enough attention to others or maybe we haven't been as helpful as we once were, etc, etc.  There is the urge to say "yes" to something that seems doable (or even if it doesn't) but before you just say "yes," stop. think and imagine what doing or providing that thing will do to you later.  If it's not going to add to stress, go for it.  If you are already starting to dread it, say, "No."   

 Other Resources

Top 15 Time Management Apps and Tools - From Lifehacker.org 

7 Note Taking Skills Every College Student Should Have - From California College San Diego blog.  (September 12, 2012)

Learn To Manage Your Time In College - Article from US News and World Reports. (October 5, 2011)