With many of us students now heading back home for Christmas (covid-safely, of course!), I (Hattie) wanted to share some time-management tips that have helped me study remotely for the past month or so.
With teaching being online, and lectures being available to us 24/7, it can feel really overwhelming to know where to start. Time management and prioritisation are vital skills in the workplace that employers will always be keeping an eye out for – so it’s definitely worth making the most of this time to learn them now.
The university has some brilliant articles on managing time and finding motivation to do work, so here are some of my favourite tips. We’ve also included some printable worksheets at the bottom of the page that could come in handy!
Give yourself some structure: I personally love a planner and a list each day – ticking things off when I get them done feels like a small achievement! One of the best bits of advice I’ve been given about university structure is to treat it like a 9-5 job with breaks. Getting up and dressed in the morning might seem like a bit of a drag when you might not be going out, but it can really help put you in the mindset to work. Knowing I won’t work after 5/6pm also means I have the evenings free to get involved with society events, catch up with mates… or get pulled into watching a double bill of “Only Connect” and “University Challenge” with the family. But if you don’t want to buy a planner in the middle of the academic year, why not try the printable worksheet, available to download at the end of this article?
Remember – you’re only human. There’s only so much you can achieve in a day before your body will need a rest and a break – and so will your brain!
Set yourself manageable goals: Whilst it’s healthy to set yourself a few goals each day, setting too many can make you overwhelmed and stressed, especially around deadline season. If you’ve got a big project that needs doing (like those pesky end-of-module assignments coming up!), split it up into smaller, more manageable tasks to do each day. Let’s take the essay assignment idea as an example. Rather than simply put “Write essay” on my to-do list, I might instead say…
> Mind-map ideas and key themes
> Find and read two secondary sources that I could use
> Structure the first paragraph of my essay
This helps me stay focused on the task at hand, and means assignments aren’t as much of a daunting prospect anymore. Remember – you’re only human. There’s only so much you can achieve in a day before your body will need a rest and a break – and so will your brain
Prioritise your work: Setting yourself manageable goals is key – but in what order do you decide to tackle them? Sometimes it feels obvious that you might just work the next deadline. However many end of module assessments are due around the same time. It’s important to be able to prioritise effectively. If you’re not sure how, why not try out Covey’s Quadrant Technique? I know it sounds really complicated and mathematical, but this technique is actually a really straight forward way to help you prioritise your work. One handout at the bottom of the page walks you through how to do it. Or you can find loads of videos on YouTube.
The Pomodoro Technique: If, like me, you watch maybe a little too many University YouTubers, then you might’ve already heard of this method of managing your time. If not, then it’s simple! The Pomodoro (a word I still cannot say) technique means you break your tasks down into 25 minute chunks. After that, you take a quick break that gets you up and away from your work for five minutes or so – personally I like to go make a cup of tea – before coming back and doing another 25 minutes. It might not sound like a lot of time to get stuff done in, but breaking down your goals into manageable tasks will definitely help, and I find I’m a lot more focused knowing I’m only working for 25 minutes before having a break! You can find the full technique, as well as some actually interesting history on how this works (Pomodoro is Italian for tomato!) here:
Your working space: If you have a desk in your room, or even a separate office space at home – definitely make use of it! If not, there’s a few small ways to make those divisions between university life/home-life just a little easier;
– Get dressed in the morning; I know I’ve mentioned it before, but getting dressed in the morning can really help create a barrier between work/rest. Although yes, there are some days where I really do want to study in my dressing gown and I just give into it – but try to make it a regular thing!
– Music can also be a big help – I find putting my headphones in and listening to some lo-fi or classical music gets me in the mood to focus and helps avoid distractions from around the house
Whilst managing your time is important, so is looking after your mental health.
Remember to ask for help: We are in very weird times right now, so we’re bound to feel stressed, or simply lack motivation some days. I definitely do. So whilst managing your time is important, so is looking after your mental health. Please reach out to someone if you’re struggling. The university has links to student support services here – so don’t ever feel like you’re in this alone.
I really hope these help in what is a pretty overwhelming time, and myself and Leanna wish everyone the best of luck with those end-of-module assignments!
The SELLL Careers Blog 