Do It Now! Time Management for Procrastinating Students

When I first went to college, I procrastinated a lot. My bad habit led to a lot of late night term papers that were completed at 4:00 a.m. In the morning, my computer would print out the assignment while I grabbed a quick shower. Then I would head off to class with only a couple hours of sleep.

Do It Now!
My dad understood my problem and wanted to help. As a gift, he made a wood carving for my desk. Alongside the school mascot were the simple words, “Do It Now!” The sentiment may be an obvious one, but it still rings true. It’s the key to good time management, even if it’s hard advice to follow.

5 Tips for Better Studying
It’s not impossible to improve your time management skills. Whether you are in high school or college, you can make better use of your time. And it won’t take more time to do it. From my research (and years of being a master procrastinator), here are a few simple tips:

1. Organize and prioritize.
   This is the best advice anyone can give you. Prioritize your assignments by keeping a calendar of due dates for papers, tests and projects. Also include dates for enrolling, submitting financial aid forms and paying tuition. Organize your assignments into folders and keep your graded work for an end-of-semester review.
2. Avoid distractions.
   One of my roommates in college claimed that he studied better in front of the television. The fact that I had to help him study for his final in biology proved otherwise. It’s easy to get distracted when friends, television, radio, phone calls and the Internet are all competing for your attention. If you need computer access, turn off e-mail, chat, and other programs that may interrupt your work. Shut out the distractions by finding a quiet place to study. Libraries are good, but so are some coffee shops and bookstores. Stake out your study place and don’t forget to turn off your cell phone.
3. Plan ahead.
   It’s tempting to look at a due date two weeks away and put the assignment on the bottom of your “things to do” list. A better idea is to break down the assignment into smaller steps and plan ahead. Give yourself easy deadlines for each step. Remember to give yourself an extra day for writing so you can re-read your work and correct it.
4. Study while you wait.
   No matter how hard we try to avoid it, sooner or later we’re stuck waiting. Whether it’s waiting at the doctor’s office or between classes, time is always being wasted. Don’t let an opportunity to study pass you by. Carry a book with you at all times. Keep a notebook for jotting down ideas about your upcoming term paper. Little 10 minute study sessions can really add up.
5. Do it now!
   Procrastination is the biggest pitfall that students encounter. Even if you are organized and study regularly, you can fall behind if you let yourself put off work that needs to be done. Make sure you take advantage of the time you have every day. Stay ahead of your assignments and you will have time to do the things you want to do.

It may be difficult at first, but good study habits are possible for everyone. Discover what doesn’t work for you and change your plan accordingly. If you can’t stand the quiet of the library, try somewhere with a little more traffic. If you study better in the morning, get up early and read over breakfast. Just don’t wait until the last minute!

Don’t Stress Out
You can’t control how much work your teachers give you. So exercise control over the situations outside of class. That means managing your extracurricular life. Whether it is a student organization needing volunteers or friends who want you to join in the fun, it’s tempting to do anything that takes you away from studying. Plan your time to include extracurricular activities, but don’t let it interfere with classwork.

On the flipside of the time management coin is the pitfall of studying too much. It’s possible to become a time management ogre and never give yourself time to relax. When you start to feel burnout, it’s time to re-evaluate your study strategy. Make sure that you don’t push yourself to the breaking point. If you feel stressed, here are some additional things to remember:

The “Do It Now!” wood carving still sits on my desk, reminding me to resist the urge to procrastinate. As poet Rudyard Kipling once wrote, life is a never ending struggle to “fill the unforgiving minute / With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run.”