Everyone says staying on top of thing is so hard in college. However, I thought I would be the ultimate exception. In high school being organized was so easy. Everything was on the same portal and teachers made the homework very clear. Here at WashU homework seems vague and the canvas, blackboard split gives me a headache. … Fast forward to Friday at 12:45, I am sprinting across campus to lab sciences with my chem lab in hand, sweat profusely running down my back as onlookers gauk. It is the first lab week, and all the sudden in the middle of lunch as I glanced at the clock, I realized that I had not turned in my Chem lab report. My heart stopped. I speedily make my way upstairs to the red locker and dramatically collapse to the floor. I begged someone to let me use a stapler (because of course I had forgotten to do that too). Little did I know, this must happen a lot. The laughing upperclassmen I asked pointed to a locker that clearly states “Extra Staplers Here”. Clearly, I’m thriving.
I love my planner. Picking out my planner for college, I probably read about a dozen business weekly articles on how to best be organized. What I settled on was the Erin Condren Weekly Planner: beautiful pattern, ample space to write daily to-do lists and weekly homework, and most importantly inspiring quotes for each month. Finding the right planner is like finding the perfect outfit, it just makes you feel good.
Sadly, my beautiful plastic lifeline that holds my chaotic schedule did not save me in my time of need. For the first time, I realized that all the articles in the world and even the most perfect planner are not gonna be able to tell me how to keep on track.
So what did I do? Of course, I set recurring alarms for 10 AM, 11 Am, 11:15 AM, etc. on Fridays so I will remember to turn in my Lab reports. Hopefully the people around me won’t get too upset. Also, on my wall is a to do list with all the things that I have to remember this week. With these safety nets, I hope that I will never forget to turn in my lab report again. However, it’s an evolving process. So, if you see a girl running to lab sciences with flying notebook pages, hopefully it is not me (but it probably is).
– Molly Ruttenberg