Wow, can you believe that it is already October? I hope you have a beautiful week ahead and study hard! This week, I want to share some tips I’ve learned along the way that aid me with managing my time wisely. Hopefully this will be of a help to you. Please feel free comment down below and share with us any methods you practice!
I used to be terrible at managing my time, throughout high school and college it was difficult for me to balance my school life with my social life. I would constantly be cancelling plans with my friends and pushing aside my social life all for one reason: because I had to study! It was terrible. My time management was poor and I found myself to have been easily distracted. I decided to make a change in that aspect of my life by practicing these five (5) methods below:
1.) Keep a Planner: The summer before starting law school, I purchased a planner and a fun, colorful pack of pens. I decided to start planning out what needed to be done when and even allotted time limits for myself. For example, I would allot 1 hour for workouts, 1 hour for reading, 30 minutes for eating, etc. I found this to be very helpful once I started school because I was able to pace myself with my case readings by allotting a certain time for the readings for each class.
2.) Take Breaks: I started practicing one of the most crucial aspects to a person’s day: break time! I found that just taking a 5-minute break in between getting work done will refuel your brain and make you feel reenergized and ready to continue with work. I saw a huge difference in my efficiency after I implemented breaks into my schedule. Back in the day, I would just continuously study and be tired and frustrated, and found myself not getting anywhere besides wasting my time. Now all that is in the past!
3.) Start Your Day by Reading the News: I used to almost never read the news, terrible, I know. I just found it to be boring, depressing, and a waste of time. But then I realized that my ignorance of current events made me out dated! It was so silly to avoid the news when there are so many resources out there ready to feed you with information. I started making it a habit to read the news for at least 20 – 30 minutes a day. I found this to be so helpful because not only will it stimulate your brain, but also keep you informed about what is going on around you and in the world. Reading in the morning will help wake-up your brain and be ready for the day. Knowledge truly is power.
4.) Remove Distractions: I used to be guilty of picking up my phone every 10 minutes or so between studies just to scroll through social media and look at pictures and read captions/comments. I realized this was useless and all it did was make me feel bad that I wasn’t in Cancun at the moment and made me lose my valuable time. I started to keep my phone away from me while I studied and the difference is amazing! I’m able to focus more, be more efficient with my work, and started to really grasp contents which I’m sure I wouldn’t have grasped if I had just looked at a picture of a puppy on my phone just a minute ago. What I do is keep my charger on the opposite side of the room from where my study desk is, that way it forces me to keep my phone away from me and keep it charged when I am not using it. I then only get up and go get it during break time or when I am done with the task I wanted to finish within a certain time limit.
5.) Reward Yourself: I never rewarded myself in the past and therefore, there was nothing to look forward to. I continued to just work and study and have my life revolve around my studies rather than maintaining a balance. It is crucial to make plans that will help you relax. Whether it be grabbing a cup of coffee with a friend, having a spa day, going to the beach, or booking a flight to Spain, do it! You work so hard, you are so driven, so who’s to say you don’t deserve a reward? Book that flight to Bali!
Comment Down Below the Ways You Manage Your Time. What Works for You?
(Your tips may be life-changing for others who read this post.)
Always great to remind myself, thank you Professor. Much needed reminders and advice, sometimes we feel like there is just not enough hours in any given day. Here is wishing you all a great day.
ReplyDeleteI am so happy you found this post well! Haha I am actually not a professor, I am a 3L student! Wishing you a beautiful week ahead! Keep working hard.
DeleteI like the idea of rewarding myself. I'll start that
ReplyDeleteHaha I don't blame you! It's important to reward yourself here and there and especially after accomplishing something great! Keep going! You got this!
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