You put your pencil down.
The proctor calls out that time is up, and your exam is finished.
As students around you simmer around with barely-contained chatter, you think to yourself that an exam does not test what you know or how you know it – the challenge is to convey what you know and how you know it in the time that you are given.
Such is life.
With the world constantly aspiring to find new ways to improve their efficiency, this article will present a few extra tips on how you can make your days a little bit more efficient.
1. Mind the gaps
Every university student knows that the perfect schedule is one that minimizes those dreaded one to two hour gaps. While gaps can be wonderful for food breaks and a quick nap between classes, the time lost in those spaces builds up over the length of a semester. After all, when school becomes monotonous, it is so easy to turn to Netflix to pass the time as you wait for your next lecture. This is a common trap – do not fall into it. One of the most powerful ways to increase your productivity is to make use of as much of your time as possible. This means recognizing that your time is a commodity, both precious and limited. Identify activities that are possible to dive into in shorter amounts of time, then work on them when it is impossible to engage in more complicated assignments.
2. Make it a combo
Let’s be completely honest – 24 hours in a day often does not feel like enough to do everything that we need to do. Thus, sometimes it is necessary to double-up. This involves strategically going over the items on your to-do list and figuring out where it is possible to knock out two birds with one stone. For instance, say you promised your friend you would watch one of their favourite movies over the week so you could discuss it together, but your laundry bin has piled up so high that you simply cannot ignore it any longer. Solution? Play the movie on your phone and listen with your earbuds in as you put your load into the washing machine, as you fold your clean clothes, and as you put them back into their respective drawers.
3. Schedule in yourself
It’s important to keep in mind that maximizing efficiency does not have to come at the price of your happiness. Completing obligations such as studying for a test or preparing for a club event are unavoidable, but you have just as much of an obligation to yourself as you do to school. So make time for you, and never give up what brings you peace in the chaos of life, whether that be going on a lunch date with friends, or catching a late movie by yourself at the theater. I, along with numerous people I know, have been guilty of losing sight of this during our undergraduate years, and as a result, have gotten stretched out too thin. As my mom often tells me: you come first, everything else after.
Good luck, everyone!