There’s never a bad time to start resolutions, especially when they could save you time and help you with your degree. Here are 16 amazing productivity tips that could make a huge difference to how you manage work, time and all the fun stuff whilst you are at university:
- Only check your email a couple of times a day. There’s usually nothing urgent that you need to deal with, and the distraction could cause you to lose a lot of time. People will ring you if they really need to speak to you.
- Get a good night’s sleep. Getting to bed on time and getting up early means that you can study effectively.
- Keep your to-do list short. Don’t fill it with 30 items that you need to do over the next few days. Pick five of the most important tasks and really focus on getting those done.
- Morning is the best time to face the difficult projects. Don’t leave anything you’ve been struggling with or don’t want to do until after lunch. Get it out of the way first.
- When you get a list of assignments and essays look at how the marks are split. Don’t spend all your time focusing on the exam that’s worth less than 10% if you have a dissertation that’s worth 35% of your mark.
- Do regular exercise, even if it’s just walking to university or getting off the bus a few stops earlier. It helps you to manage stress and anxiety and can also help you to focus.
- Eat healthy food once in a while. Getting your five a day will make a noticeable difference to your energy levels, which helps you to feel more productive.
- Get into routines that help you save time, such as deciding what you want to wear in advance and planning the meals that you’re going to eat for the rest of the week. The President of United States has an entire wardrobe of suits that coordinate so that he can focus on the big decisions.
- Break up your day into 60 – 90 minute slots. After 90 minutes your concentration starts to fade and you’ll start wasting time. Take a break, go for a walk, have a cup of tea.
- You might have your favourite corner of the library, but studies show that if you work in different environments you could be more productive. You could do your reading in a quiet café, write your essays from the library and revise at home.
- It takes a lot of energy to get started, so once you’re on a roll with a task, do your best to finish it.
- Focus on one thing. People have a tendency to jump from task to task, and this can waste a lot of time. Do one thing at a time, and don’t kid yourself that having a break to work on something else is a good way to get things done.
- Don’t eat on the job. If you are revising or studying and feel hungry, have a break. Eating and studying normally leads to no work getting done.
- Organise study groups with your friends so that you can share knowledge and notes. Getting help from those who attend lectures with you can ease the stress, but don’t spend too long in a group if it’s getting distracting.
- Make sure that you reward yourself for a job well done. Go out for dinner with friends or have a movie date. Having something to look forward to is a good way to focus, you don’t want university eating into your free time.
- Get ahead when it comes to applying for jobs and internships. Have a plan of action and stay organised.
Enterprise recruits for graduate management trainees throughout the year, so you can apply for roles at a time that suits you.
