Article by Rahel Kaaya
Winter vacation is over, but winter itself is not. Although we have had a few good sunny days in February, that unexpected snow at the end of the month reminded us all what time of year it is. I do hope this is the last snow we will be seeing because I really don’t like the cold.
We are back in uni and, as I was looking at my schedule, I realized what a busy semester it’s going to be between working, blogging, school, catching up on my favorite TV shows (very important!) and other future projects I’m planning on starting. It’s safe to say that I need a plan. I’m not a student guru, so let’s just get that part clear—but I do know a few things about multitasking. Actually, I function so much better when I am busy. When I’m not, I am just lost. Time is precious, so let’s get right into it.
1. INVEST IN A PLANNER
You have to plan your day if you are going to get anything done. Make a to-do list of the things you want to get done in a day, tick off what you have managed to get done at the end of the day. You will see that your days are most productive that way. But hey, if a planner is too much of a hassle, you can always use your phone.
2. LEARN TO SAY NO
I’m not promoting flaky people, because they are not the best people, but you also don’t have to say yes to everything either, because you are just as important. This also applies to saying no to yourself as well. Meaning, “that which is not worth your time does not need to take most of your time,” because that means you will not be very productive. This is a big one for me as well, because I always feel the need to show up for people even though I don’t necessarily have to.
3.GROUP DISCUSSIONS
These are a life saver because they actually work. They save you time and spare you hours of reading stuff that you might not understand on your own. Get a group of people you can work with, and school won’t be so stressful. Start early; don’t wait until the night of the exam, because it’s not going to work. This is self-explanatory.
4. FIND SOMETHING YOU CAN DO ON THE SIDE
I think this is very important. When you are busy, you manage your time better, because you think you don’t have enough of it. Maybe this just works for me, but I work well under pressure. Otherwise, I just procrastinate, and we know that never ends well. I don’t believe that there are dumb students; we just have so many people doing things that they are not interested in, so their priorities are just misplaced. Sign up to a gym, or get a job, join a sport club, or a dance class, learn a skill, etc. Just do something you love that gets you excited about life.
5. ENJOY YOURSELF AND RELAX SOMETIMES
We all know people who stress so much when it comes to school. I am definitely not one of those people. I mean, don’t get me wrong, stress happens, but I believe that there is so much more we can learn from school than just the contents of our textbooks. While I refrain from judging, I think it’s very important to not take yourself too seriously; find good friends who lift you up and enjoy life with them, try new foods, go to new places and don’t be so uptight about life. You only live once, after all, so that is what I plan to do. I read somewhere that whenever you are afraid of doing something that is outside of your comfort zone, you should ask yourself: “What’s the worst that could happen?” Most of the time, the answer is “Not much.”
For more tips and wisdom from Rahel, check out www.rahelkaaya.com