Between classes, work, extracurriculars, and personal life tasks, being a college student makes for an extremely busy schedule! Juggling multiple things at once can be quite a challenge, and the only way I have been able to successfully (for the most part) handle everything has been to keep myself extremely organized. One tool in particular that I have become more and more reliant on during my college career to keep on top of things is Notion. Notion is an amazing organizational platform that I use for all different kinds of task management. I love having everything in one dedicated space and know that I can easily access things quickly and efficiently. Here are some of the things I use Notion for, and how it has helped me to stay on top of my life and ensure I can show up as the most successful version of myself:
- Class Assignments & Notes
Starting off with the most obvious thing I use Notion for as a college student: class assignments and notes. Notion has a ton of great templates you can download for free, whether it is on the platform itself or ones you can find online. I chose a template that reminds me of my canvas dashboard, only when I click on a class, it takes me to a home page with all of my assignments and their corresponding due dates as well as a section where I can take notes for each class session. I love being able to have all of my assignments listed out for each class, so I can see them separately for each individual class, or all together in one master list of assignments I need to complete. It’s also super convenient to type all of my class notes in this section as well, because I can easily click on the class day and not have to be scrolling aimlessly on Google Docs to reference something!
- Financial Tracker
At the beginning of this year, I began implementing the goal of being more aware of my finances and what I am spending each month. I downloaded a finance tracker onto my Notion homepage that allows me to track my income and expenses for each month. This has been extremely helpful when comparing charges on my credit card statements, looking at what my money is going to each month, and having my savings automatically calculated to see if I am breaking even, saving money, or losing money each month. Every time I get paid from work, I enter it into the income section for the allocated month. Each time I make a purchase, I enter in what the purchase was, how much I spent, the day I bought it, and the category of the expense (groceries, clothing, gas, subscriptions, etc). This tracker has allowed me to take more control over my spending habits and notice where my money is really going. I have become way more aware of my money, which I think will help me to budget in the future!
- Job Application Tracker
Another thing I have started using Notion for is tracking the jobs I apply to. As a senior soon to graduate in May, it is extremely helpful to have a template where I can keep track of the jobs I am applying to and the status of my application. The template I downloaded allows me to adjust the status of my application (applied, interviewed, rejected, accepted, etc), record the name of the company and the position I applied for, the date I applied, and additional notes if I want to record any information about the role. It has proven to be super motivating to see all of the jobs I have applied for listed out in front of me and makes me feel more productive in my job searches!
- Goals/ Goal Setting
Notion has so many amazing templates to help you stay on track with goals and to-do’s. I have a daily to do list, a monthly to do list, as well as overall goals to remind myself of longer term things to accomplish. I love how so many of the templates are super cute and have different themes or aesthetics, because it makes me feel more inspired to get things crossed off of my list and feel productive.
Overall, Notion is a great way to keep track of the many tasks in life, and helps me to stay focused and motivated. You can also download the Notion app on your phone to access things on the go, which has really helped me to quickly be able to reference things in a moment’s notice! Especially as I approach graduation and transition into my post-grad life, I am glad I have a baseline understanding of Notion and the many features it has, because I anticipate I will be using it a lot more for all of my “adulting” tasks. Budgeting expenses for rent and a full time paycheck, staying consistent with habit trackers, making grocery lists, and overall keeping track of my to-do’s will feel a lot more manageable to me with the use of Notion. If you haven’t already given it a try, I recommend making a free account and exploring all of the templates they have for use!