I just had the craziest week of the semester. Actually, of my entire experience at Colby. I had three papers due (including a research paper) and an oral presentation just yesterday. Although I had done plenty of planning in advance (I even stayed in the weekend before Halloween to get ahead on my work,) I still was up until 5 AM one night this week.
A few of my friends pull all-nighters regularly. A good number leave papers until a night or two before they are due. I’ve tried it, and ended up with a pretty good grade. However, that night before the paper is due is incredibly stressful. I spend so much time worrying that the printers will break or that something bad is going to happen that it is hard for me to write well. And when I finally do get the paper done, it takes me at least a week to recover from having been so stressed.
So I have pledged that I am going to do my best to try and stay on top of the plan for the rest of the semester. It is so much more pleasant for me to work on a project when I am not stressed, even if I can get a good grade writing the paper the night before it’s due. And aside from being more enjoyable, I learn so much more when I write in a calm state of mind.
Here’s what I’ve done so far (or what I am trying to do):
1. I took out my planner and all of my syllabi. I went through my planner and put every deadline in for the rest of the semester. It’s so nice to know when your busiest weeks are ahead of time so that way you can plan accordingly.
2. Now that you have an idea of what the rest of the semester looks like, start planning when you are actually going to do these projects. Estimate how much time you are going to need for each project and start making schedules for yourself. Write in pencil so that you can keep adjusting your schedule!
3. Try to utilize those awkward half hours.  I admit that I’ve never been good at this. But my adviser insists that it works. When you have a half hour between classes, instead of going to the spa and talking to a friend, sit down and do some reading. Even if you cannot finish an assignment, you’ll feel so much better knowing that you’re somewhere.
4. Keep working out. Or get a little bit of physical activity in. You’ve probably heard this a bagillion times, you’re bound to be so much more productive with endorphins.
5. Work smart. One of my friends is always telling me, “work smart, not hard.” Well, you should work hard, but you should also make sure that you work smart (and don’t just work hard and kill yourself). So what does this mean? Now that you have half a semester behind you, you have a pretty good idea of what each professor expects from you. Or at least what you need to do to be prepared for each class. I used to outline every chapter of reading, but I have found that outlining is not necessarily the best use of my time because the professor goes over most of the material from the chapter in class. So instead of outlining, I started actively reading (ie: taking notes in the margins, highlighting, and using post it flags to mark important pages and points). I’ve found that this is just as effective as outlining and takes far less time!
 6. Don’t be afraid to ask for help (or extensions). I’m not one to ask for extensions. It’s probably because my teachers were extremely strict in middle school and high school (and scarred me to think that teachers would never make exceptions.) Obviously, a professor is not going to be happy if you email him/her at midnight the night before an assignment is due. But if you ask in advance, they’re often more than happy to give you an extension if you explain that you have other things due. There are some professors who might not give you an extension, but can still give you some tips (and go into grading your paper knowing you had a rough week).
7. Remind yourself that some stress can be good for you- if we weren’t under any stress, we wouldn’t be as inclined to get things done on time. The key is to keep your stress in a zone where you can manage it.