One of the hardest transitions in going from summer vacation to the beginning of the fall semester is suddenly being thrown back into the world of academia. Over the past few months of summer, most of us became accustomed to not having a schedule as demanding as the ones we are currently experiencing being back at App. Some of us definitely got used to getting ten hours of sleep each night and watching hours of Netflix every day. And now, here we are, forced to go to class five days a week, attend club meetings, study, write essays, the list goes on and on. What are we going to do? We can’t just drop the ball; we are collegiettes with things to get done.
1. Set up a reward system. Sometimes a task can seem so tedious and daunting that we can’t even bring ourselves to find a place to start. When you have that eight-page research paper to write and you can’t find the will within yourself to sit down and focus, promise yourself a reward. Tell yourself you’ll write four pages of the paper and then you’ll take a break and go for a walk, bake cookies, watch an episode of Orange Is the New Black, whatever it may be. Then get back to work, finish that paper and reward yourself again. It’ll give you a decent break from what you have to do and you’ll have more incentive.
2. Write things into your schedule. Maybe you feel like you have so much to do and so little time. Map out your day’s schedule with time frames for the things you need to get done and try to stick to it. Doing this will make you feel like your day is less hectic and is more organized, which will lead you to feeling less stressed. Do this even with things you actually have desire to do, such as go to the gym, take a nap or online shop, then you’ll have time to do the things you enjoy and you won’t end up feeling deprived. Just make sure you schedule the most important things first to ensure they get done.
3. Keep a planner or make to-do lists. Having a visual representation of the things you need to get done is helpful because you’ll have something to refer back to, therefore you can’t forget about an assignment you have or an appointment you need to go to. Not to mention that there are tons of cute planners available for purchase, even in the shops on King Street.
4. Block websites that distract you. For Google Chrome you can install something called “StayFocusd.” How it works is you enter in the link to any website that distracts you and it gives you an allotted amount of time for the day to use that website. Once your time is up for the website, it is blocked for the rest of the day. Yes, while it does sound torturous to not be able to stalk people on Instagram for the rest of the day, at least you’ll be productive.
5. Stay organized. Label everything, keep folders, keep binders, stick notes on things. An organized college student is a happy and efficient college student.