What To Do and What Not To Do

Over the past few weeks we have been studying ways to reach success in college. From developing good habits, to coming prepared to class, to doing the “invisible” work, to just simply putting in the effort and time, we all have tricks to come out on top. But sometimes what works for you might not work for me and so we are all on a mission to find what tips really help us and which ones don’t.

            For me I find it helpful to keep an agenda with all my due dates in it, so when I have the extra time I can get ahead. Besides school I also work so sometimes doing homework the night before isn’t an option for me because I just don’t have the time. Making a schedule with designated times for everything helps me manage my time, and now that I have been following it for a few weeks it has become something like a habit so I know when I need to do things. Another trick I use is my parents. Since I am a commuter I am still living at home and my parents can still nag me, but having them nagging me gives me the initiative to not procrastinate. I guess right now they are like my crutch while I develop the good habits that I need to have in order to be successful.

            The things that don’t work for me, mainly is dedicating time to doing assignments. Since I am currently working about 36 hours a week I have to shorten the periods of time I use for homework. Now time has nothing to do with effort, I spend less time on an assignment but put twice the effort in the time that I do have. There are a lot of techniques concerning time, the article by Malcom Gladwell suggest that if you want to become an expert in an area you have to dedicate your practice about 10,000 hours. I don’t have that kind of time so I have to figure out a way to substitute time with effort in order to get the same results.