As the semester starts to pick up, I find myself feeling strapped for time almost daily. It is not fun to feel like you are racing against the clock to make it to class, to meetings, and to submit assignments on time. As a third-year student, I know that saving any amount of time—no matter how small—is incredibly beneficial. Here are a few time-saving tips to give a try.
- Lay out your clothes the night beforehand.
If you are anything like me, you could not be less of a morning person. I, however, despise feeling rushed and am very afraid of being late to class. This is a brutal combination—hating to wake up but also not wanting to be sprinting out the door. A good compromise is to lay out your clothes when you go to bed. This saves time and decision-making in the morning. I have an 8 a.m. class this semester, and not having to spend time picking out my clothes in the morning has made my wakeups much smoother.
- Utilize drive-up and curbside pickup options.
With my own kitchen in my apartment, I have been able to make more of my meals at home. With this freedom comes with the necessity of grocery shopping—a time-consuming and tedious task. I recently tried curbside grocery pickup at Harris Teeter, and it is a game changer. Instead of having to take the time to pick out all of my groceries in person, I picked out what I needed online and set a time to pick it up from the comfort of my car. The best part is that there is no additional curbside pickup fee if your order meets the $35 minimum.
- Don’t save all of your cleaning and organizing for one day.
Instead of devoting a large chunk of time to cleaning my apartment, I have become better at doing small tasks throughout the week to avoid an end of the week buildup that requires lots of time and attention. For example, do a load of laundry on Thursday afternoon, and clean your bathroom on a morning where you do not have an early class. Taking a few minutes each day to organize and clean has not only saved me time in the long run, but it has also made my space feel much more controlled and peaceful.
- Figure out when you are the most productive in-terms of schoolwork—and stick to it.
I think this is one of my most important tips. As the semester progresses, try to figure out what time of day is your prime work time. For me, this is the morning. To take advantage of this time of productivity, I will wake up earlier to get started on work to avoid late-night studying where I am exhausted, slow, and unproductive. Saving time requires taking advantage of your peak hours of productivity.
Above all, it is important to realize that you sometimes cannot do it all—and that is okay! I hope we all find a way to save a little bit of time to do something we love this semester.