This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UAB chapter.
Ever feel like all you do is Work, Sleep, School repeat and that you never have time to be social? Well, here are some tips to maintain a managed balance of all 3!
1) Inform Your Job
- Make sure that your job knows when your classes are so they won’t try to schedule you when you have class. Also, make sure they don’t make it to where when you’re not in class that you’re working and that you get a break. Most places are understanding that you’re a student first, so just be sure to keep an open line of communication with your place of work.
2) Plan Out Your Schedule Ahead
- The best way to do this is investing in either a notepad, desk planner, a physical planner or all 3. This way you can note everything you have that’s scheduled with your classes from the syllabus, work hours, and extracurricular events. It’s also a great way to visually see what your schedule is like in a wider scope and can make it easier to plan outings with friends like going to get lunch or coffee!
3) Prioritizing
- Think about all the things that you have and rank them in level of importance. Also, when it comes to assignments, see when their due dates fall and prioritize to get them done either first or early. Also, knowing when you have a lot going on most weeks on certain days helps. I know in my schedule Wednesdays are killer, so I know that I need to get my work done either early in the week or after Wednesday. For example, if something is due Thursday morning, then I need to have it done by Tuesday evening. Then another thing to think about is, is that nap really worth it. Don’t get me wrong I am a huge fan of napping; however, I think to myself “should I take this nap right now or go work on that assignment instead and get to go to bed early?” Naps are a temporary relieve, but are ineffective if you just wake up with a giant mound of stuff to do in a shorter time span.
4) Categorizing
- This kind of relates to prioritizing; however, is different because this means placing all of your task in categories based on Work, School, and Social. By doing this, you can see if you’re evenly balancing the three and see if you need to shift some things around.
5) Saving Time For Yourself
- Whether it be watching tv, hanging out with friends, or going to a coffee shop to vibe out and sketch, do whatever makes you happy and that relaxes you from the stressors of life!
Never let yourself get to this point…