a productive vacation

The more I talk to people about scheduling and making time for things, the more I see that everyone is busy in their own way.  Everyone puts less important things off so that they can finish more important tasks.  Everyone has at least a few items on their to do list that they wish they could check off but just cannot find the time to tackle.  Everyone has this sub-list of pesky to do’s that have been lingering around for months.  Most of us, however, just do not have the time to cross them off the list. 

Items like these are the ones that appear on my, and should appear on your, winter break to do list.  With about a month off from school, there is a bit more free time for us undergrads.  If you are like me, however, there is not much time.  Between working, catching up with friends, and preparing for the next semester it is hard to find the time to get around to that winter break to do list.  It seems infinitely easier to procrastinate with the excuses that you worked hard all semester, you deserve a break, and you have all month to get to that list.  Do NOT fall into this trap.  The spring semester is just around the corner, and it will be here before you know it.  Before you are thrust into another semester of hectic day-to-day tasks (with no room for tackling those pesky to do’s) it is important to start attacking that winter break to do list early.  After all, it is like I always say, if you start early you will not have to panic and rush later.

I will admit that it is hard.  I have always complained that over winter break it is nearly impossible to get things done.  The break is short, the weather makes you want to sleep all day and stay inside, and the holiday gives you a reason to sit back and watch television or read all day.  Falling into this trap, however, is avoidable.  By following these three simple pointers, you can turn your quick winter break into a productive and relaxing vacation …

1. Give yourself a day or two just to relax.  If you jump into your to do list too soon you risk burning out early.  Take a few days off in the beginning just to relax and catch up on some much-needed sleep.  It is not only important to be well rested, but it is also important to get laziness out of your system.  Later on when you want to procrastinate you will no longer have the excuse that you deserve a vacation, because you will have already had it.
2. Have a solid list.  Having a to do list that is either too short or to long is not productive.  If the list is too short, you will not use your time wisely and you will not accomplish much over your holiday.  Having a list that is too long is also counter-productive, because there is a good chance that you will not be able to get to every item on it.  This will lead you to a stressful and unfulfilling vacation.  How long is long enough, you ask?  This depends on you.  For me about 15 items seems perfectly reasonable.  If you are just a beginner when it comes to scheduling, perhaps you should try less. 
3. Group the items and budget your time.  Grouping your items according to themes can make it seem like there are less of them.  It can also help you budget your time better.  Take my list for example.  My list has 15 items, 6 of which fall into the category of cleaning: cleaning out my closet, cleaning out my desk, cleaning out my computer files, ect.  I have grouped all of these items into the first week of vacation so that I can work within a clean space for the rest of the break.  This helped me budget my times because I gave each day this week one cleaning task (since these were medium-sized tasks).  Another example of this might be grouping together the tasks that fall under the category of “errands”.  You could run all your errands in one day to prevent multiple trips over the break.

Keeping on top of your winter to do list is the only sure-fire way to ensure that you complete it.  If you keep putting the list off, you will wind up rushing to finish it during the last week of vacation.  If you start the list early, you can enjoy that last week and enter the spring semester well rested and refreshed.  Make sure to keep your list in a visible spot, and do NOT procrastinate.  Click here for your two minutes of procrastination.

*sigh of relief*

I think it is safe to say that we have all had at least one of those moments when you sit down after a long day at work or school or whatever and just sigh, tired but happy that you have finished whatever it was that you set out to do.  For me the task was to tread water for four of the craziest months of my life, and today I feel as though I can finally sit down and sigh, exhausted but impressed that I survived.

Everyone’s life gets a little crazy from time to time.  Maybe a friend asks if you could help watch her children while she tries to pick up extra hours at work.  Maybe you see a really great opportunity in taking on a second job, but you cannot quite quit the first one yet.  Maybe you are over zealous when you register for classes, but then insist that you can handle the heavy load.  Or maybe it is just the end of the fall semester, and you are trying to juggle all of your regular responsibilities plus holiday shopping, cooking, and planning.  Whatever the case may be, there are times in all of our lives when we have too much on our plates so to speak.  Working through these busy times is not easy.

This week I want to focus on this moment, the sign of relief.  When you sit down and sigh after a tough day, the sigh should not only signify relief, but it should also mean three very important things:

1. Reflection.  The hard thing to do after a long day of work or school or whatever is to take the time to think about what you did, what you accomplished, and what you wish you could have gotten to.  Being critical about this can help you monitor your progress and plan for tomorrow.
2. Evaluation.  This sounds similar to reflection, but is very different.  Evaluation is an analysis of what worked and what did not work.  Does referring to your planner work as a scheduling technique for you, or are post-it notes more effective?  Does the material stick better if you study in the morning or in the evening?  Evaluation is the key to being productive and getting more things done.
3. Giving yourself credit.  This is the one, I will admit, with which I have the most trouble.  After a long day or a long semester I am always critical of the things I could have or should have done, as well as the things I could have or should have done better.  It is important to be critical of these things, but it is also EXTREMELY important to pat yourself on the back occasionally and say, “Good job,” or at least, “Good effort.” 

As the semester draws to a close and students everywhere take a collective sigh of relief, let’s all take the time to look back on the semester.  Reflect on what you did, evaluate what you could have done better, and then give yourself a nice long winter break as a reward for your hard work.

I hope everyone has their winter break to do lists already made up, as I assure you that we will be back in school before you know it.  As the holiday draws near, remember to make time for a trip to the store for a new calendar and new day planner.  Enjoy the holidays and click here for your two minutes of procrastination.

the secret to life: know yourself

So, it’s finals week again.  It is time for studying and writing papers, for exam-taking and last-minute edits, for sleep deprivation and stress.  It always seems that the worst part of the end of the semester is the cramming that most of the student population takes part in to ace those finals and get in those term papers on time.  I’ll admit I used to cram.  I thought of myself as an awesome crammer, too.  However, one day during finals week some semesters ago, while I was running on a few hours of sleep and coffee trying to get in a few more minutes of studying, I noticed one of my classmates cool as a cucumber using the last minutes before our final to sit back and relax.  Needless to say, I was envious.

Just this past week I experienced a similar scenario, except this time I was the cool one - resting up while everyone else was scrambling to get their papers finished.  A friend told me she wanted to be more like me next semester, and she asked me how I kept on top of things so well.  My answer for her was easy: know yourself.

The key to being a good scheduler, to staying on top of your assignments and other responsibilities, and to getting things done ahead of time is to know how efficient you are and how fast you can go.  When you know your abilities you become an infinitely better scheduler, because you can better predict the time you will need for certain task so you can allot yourself more accurate time slots in your schedule.  Let’s employ a cookie analogy, shall we?  Imagine that a friend dares you to eat 100 cookies in one day.  If you start eating cookies too fast in the beginning, you will become too full and will have to slow own.  If you wait until later to start eating the cookies, you will never finish on time.  However, if you know how many your stomach can handle in a given hour, you can accurately pace yourself to attack the 100 cookies and be victorious in accomplishing the task.

Of course scheduling is not just about knowing yourself, but I would argue that this makes up 50 percent of a good scheduler.  The other 50 percent, of course, is discipline and diligence.  With these three components together, a super-scheduler is born the likes of which can charge through finals week with ease.  How, you ask?  With these three steps:

1. Write it down.  It is annoying to constantly carry around a planner and a pencil, but stick to it.  When you have an assignment, write it down.  When you have an appointment, write it down.  When you have an errand to run, write it down.  Having all the things that you need to get done in one place nearly guarantees that you will not forget anything.  Whereas if you do not have these things written down, you are bound to miss a deadline or a meeting.  Be diligent in keeping track of your tasks; knowing what has to get done is half the battle.
2. Know yourself.  I cannot stress the importance of knowing one’s capabilities enough.  Being able to predict how much time a task will take is crucial when scheduling.  If you are unsure of your abilities, time yourself.  For instance, I know that it takes me about an hour to read 15 to 20 pages.  Thus when I am scheduling out my class reading, I can estimate how long each assignment will take.  When you are engaged in this process, also remember to be honest with yourself.  Do not assume that you can read faster because you want to be done in time to watch your favorite television show.  Make sure to critically consider the time it will take to complete an assignment and allot yourself enough time to tackle each task. 
3. Do NOT procrastinate.  It seems like every time I make a list like this the last item is about avoiding procrastination, but this is important.  You can be a master scheduler, but if you procrastinate you have accomplished nothing.  In order to stick to your schedule you must be disciplined, be motivated, and remain strong against the temptation to check your Facebook or turn on the television.  I have found that thinking about all the fun stuff I will be able to do after the task at hand is finished or after the semester is over helps to keep me motivated and focused.

This week and the beginning of next week are crucial.  After working hard all semester these last 10 days are the days in which we must keep pushing forward, even if we are tired and overworked.  Make sure to know yourself when you are allotting study time in your schedule, and do NOT leave it all for the last minute.  Remember, if you finish the semester strong you can feel good about the work you have done as you go into winter break.  Speaking of, try to keep up on those winter to do lists.  The vacation will be over before you know it, so stay on top of that list!  Click here for your two minutes of procrastination.

winter break: the long weekend colleges call vacation

With the last week of classes almost half way through, finals are fast approaching.  Studying and preparing for term papers and tests has us all busy and stressed, not to mention the added tasks that come along with the holiday season.  With so much to do in such little time we all like to keep telling ourselves that in a few weeks we will be sleeping late, relaxing, and enjoying winter break.

What I have found over the past two years of college is that winter break is a joke.  Every year I build the month between the fall and spring semesters up in my mind as a vacation – a saving grace from my crazy schedule.  What I have come to accept, however, is that one month is not long enough to be considered a vacation.  After getting everything done that needs to be tackled before school starts again, it feels as if we have had a long weekend off from school and not five weeks.  A one month break just not long enough to be placed on the same level as summer vacation.  It is an entirely different animal.

So, what are you going to do this winter break?  If you want it to be productive, you better start think about it now.  If you wait for break to start before making a winter break to do list, you will end up putting it off until after the holiday.  Once Christmas passes, you’ll hold off until New Years.  Once you party hard for the new year, you’ll put off making the list further.  Before you know it, it will be the week before classes start up again, and you will only being making the list.  The entire break will have been lost, and all those things you wanted to get done will have to be fit in somewhere between work and school during the semester.

The short break between the fall and spring semesters can be quite productive.  It is a time to get caught up on reading, catch up with friends, re-evaluate your major (and minor), do volunteer work, fill out applications, request letters of recommendation, or just clean our your closet.  Whatever has been looming on your to do list for months can and should be accomplished over the break, but keep in mind there is very little time to get to everything.  To ensure that you make your break a productive one (and that it is enjoyable), follow these three easy steps to making a winter break to do list:

1. Write it down.  For the next two to three weeks you should think critically about what you want and need to get done over the break.  Keep a list going, bring it with you to school and work, and add to it constantly.  Brainstorm and make sure to keep track of all of your ideas.
2. Be selective.  Making a list of 20 things to do over the break is great until you try to get everything done, and you forget enjoy it the time off from classes.  Keep your list short and be particular about what you ultimately choose to put on it.  Keeping your list to no more than 5 items will give you time to get everything done, while also allowing you time to relax.
3. Do NOT procrastination.  Procrastinating over winter break is so much worse than doing so over summer vacation.  At least when you put things off over the summer, you end up with a month to finish all the things you wanted to do.  With winter break it just goes too fast.  If you are slow to start, you will not be able to finish your list.  Start early so that you can end early and enjoy the last week or two with nothing specific to do.

As finals and due dates for term papers approach in the coming weeks, remember that you have worked hard all semester and that everything will get done on time if you keep working hard.  Try to find some time during finals week to make a winter break list for yourself, even if it is a short one.  A productive winter break is a fun winter break, so don’t procrastinate!  Click here for your two minutes of procrastination.