Many students study hard but few study smart. Studying smart is the little magic behind consistent high grades, securing dream jobs, and overall, leading a peaceful and organized life. In this article, we will reveal the secrets of how you can study smart by managing your time.
The importance of time management becomes apparent when we try to look for gaps in our scheduling and lost marks in the exams. If we keep on ignoring the importance of time management, we will keep on missing out on the root of the problems in academic performance.
So, let’s read ahead and learn from the best research done on how we can improve our learning by understanding the importance of time management.
#1 Make healthy and balanced schedules
Making real schedules is actually harder than making empty schedules (the ones you don’t want to follow). So, the problem lies in the student practice of making schedules with no real will to follow them. So, beware of this common pitfall.
Make a schedule that is balanced and healthy. Studying every wakeful minute of the day does not benefit anyone, therefore, give yourself sufficient breaks for exercising and healthy eating. Also, don’t forget to be a helping hand around the house or dorm.
You may not realize, but your brain likes a variety of activities and stays sharper because of all the other things you choose to do.
#2 Make room for naps and sleep
This one is so important that we need to separate it from the healthy schedule above. Sleep not only relaxes you in general, rather it is a powerful way to organize your thoughts and material that you have learned. Of course, you don’t do so consciously, but your subconscious is very much active during sleep.
#3 Make productive checklists
One of time management techniques is to make checklists.
There are three types of checklists you can make to improve your time management:
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Checklist of tasks to do every day
This checklist is the bucket list of things you want to do in a day, such as finish biology homework, take chemistry notes, catch up on math classwork, and so on.
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List of tasks you achieved in a day
This list is a kind of “mini data collection” for each day to increase the study focus, such as, finished an English essay, didn’t do Urdu worksheet, forgot to do physics revision.
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Dream list of short term and long term goals
This one can be managed everyday and is not like the ones mentioned above. Your dream list is a helpful, motivating tool to keep yourself conscious of your goals. Such as, become an artist, discover plants, do a fun experiment.
Bonus point of time management is that all of these lists improve your focus in studies. Make sure that you use the lists on a regular basis, find any deficiencies or problem areas in achieving your goals, and fix these areas in your lists the next day. The best time to review your lists is at night, just before you sleep.
#4 Don’t wait till the eleventh hour to plan
We all have this side of ours that likes to delay things – not all the things though. We may not want to delay watching a football game or an ice-cream with friends, but we do want to part ways with deep thinking required during study.
Once we are aware that we want to delay studying, the problem is already half solved. If you want to delay studying and wait till the last moment to make a plan, you need to set some motivation factors in place.
#5 Reward yourself for finishing tasks
One of the important time management techniques is to keep a small reward for yourself at the end of the task accomplished. This is a well researched technique of managing time. You can keep a reward as small as talking to a friend, eating a snack you like, or playing a game you had been wanting to play.
Rewarding yourself improves your time management by fixing the delaying habit.
#6 Do the Pomodoro technique
In Pomodoro technique, you need to set a timer of 25 minutes. In this time, you need to stay focused and work on your homework, read a book, or do something that requires your intensive attention.
After 25 minutes, give yourself a break – any way you like.
#7 Time management for students giving tests and exams
A part of time management is to be aware of the requirements of the tasks ahead, such as exams and tests. A good time management may go to waste if you aren’t aware of the following, and it will also help you manage your time better!
- Exam pattern for each subject
- Marks distribution
- Estimated time required to prepare for each chapter
- Estimated days required for each subject
You can also use this time to gradually decrease other engagements such as sports, meeting relatives and friends, shopping trips, and so on. If you can, try to deliver all other responsibilities before exams.
#8 Collect all the study material in time
One of the useful tips on time management for students is to collect the revision material in time. If you need notes, past-papers, books, or help with any missing topics, you should do all of this before exams.
You probably don’t want to leave any new topics for the last day before the exam, because this is very likely to create panic and loss of sleep. It will also make you focus only on the new topic that you are studying for the first time.
#9 Try journaling everyday
Writing about your day helps you focus your thoughts better. So, while you are making your checklists everyday, it will help you write your thoughts in a journal. This is a general focusing activity and not specifically related to studies.
Write anything you like. Ideally, just 5-10 lines is enough for a day. You can choose to write about something that inspired you, a good joke or a memorable instant you created that day. It will help you be in the “now”. Time management is sometimes all about grounding oneself: If you feel in the moment, you are worry free and more keen on learning.
#10 Schedule beyond studies
Some of the activities that can help you improve time management are not related to studying directly. However, these activities keep you sharper and more focused. In turn, you are able to manage your study time better:
- Reading books
- Solving crossword puzzles
- Playing memory games
- Playing chess and cards
- Drawing and painting
- A good night’s sleep
- Exercise
#11 Remove the unknowns and manage time during exams
Other than preparation of the exam, make sure you know how the exam will be conducted. Many students appearing for board exams, international exams, and computer based tests get confused because:
- Exam venue is in a new place (can be a hotel, hall, ground, or computer room).
- Students aren’t prepared to find a new place.
- Students get confused with directions given to them.
- Students forget an important identification document at home.
- Students are not familiar with exam hall rules, computer, and calculator usage.
Therefore, you must not let anything surprise you because any type of confusion can cause you to lose confidence, leading to bad time management during tests and exams.
Watch a video online of the exam center (if provided), talk to friends who have given the test already, and talk to your teachers to find out what to expect. Remove as many unknowns as possible and don’t let anything surprise you.
If your exam center is in a new place, study the directions on the map, visit the place beforehand and know your way.
#12 Good notes improve your time management
Good note taking habits are important for improving your time management by giving you an opportunity to look at your short notes instead of figuring out long chapters.
Good notes also help you memorize chunks of information so you tend to recall information quicker than you would without notes.
A great way to make notes for long-term memory is to write the notes without looking at the chapters or books. After a few days, discuss the notes orally with a friend or review the notes in a different way, such as a presentation, speech, or discussion.
Some of the well known methods of note taking include:
The Cornell method: Divide your page into three sections. The main section is for the teacher’s points. Bottom section is for writing questions that come to your mind. Right section is a one or two word summary of the teacher’s points.
The mind mapping method: Mind mapping is a graphical representation of how you understand information. You will make a center circle or any shape that contains the main idea in one word. Connect that with other main ideas and supportive details. You can think of this as a tree of information that branches out.
#13 Join community learning activities
Joining community learning activities improves time management by giving you an opportunity to stay on track while learning with a group.
For more on how to manage time and study better, Download the Noon app. Don’t lose momentum and keep learning!