Tag: AY1718

The following blog post was written by peer advisor Sydney, a SEAS junior studying biomedical engineering and biophysics.
I will be the first person to admit that my time management skills leave something to be desired. I, like many college students, am very susceptible to distractions. And by distractions I mean everything that isn’t what I am supposed to be doing. Whether it is a new series on Netflix, a Buzzfeed quiz that will tell me if I am more Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime (I got Hulu btw), or a friend who wants to grab lunch, staying on task is and has always been a challenge. Throughout my college career, I have become progressively better at managing my time, and I wanted to share a few tips with you guys!
1. Use a calendar.

Whether it is a physical agenda or a calendar app, using a calendar is the clearest way to actually see how you are spending your time. It can be hard to conceptualize just how much of your day something that is two hours long can take up. Two hours on its own doesn’t seem like much, but if you block it out on your calendar it is surprisingly time consuming. It is also a great way to avoid double-booking yourself.
2. Get little things out of the way.

If you can finish something in five minutes, just go ahead and do it. Even if it isn’t particularly urgent, getting it out of the way feels good and avoids a major headache later on.
3. Personalize your schedule.

Figure out when you are most or least productive and consider that when setting aside time for things. If you work better in the mornings, block off more time in the morning to do homework or other assignments. If you’re more of a late owl, make sure to reserve time in the afternoon/evening to get stuff done. Figure out which schedule makes you most productive and go with that.
4. Limit your distractions.

Put yourself in a position to stay focused. This can be tricky, especially since we live in the digital age. To keep yourself off your phone try using an app like Forest that provides incentive for you to not use your phone. You can also try various extensions for your web browser that can block certain websites when you turn it on. Find a way of eliminating whatever your most common distraction is.
5. Take care of yourself.

 
You’ve probably heard the “eat healthy, get enough sleep” lecture a thousand times, but in terms of productivity it is actually really important. Think about if that extra hour or two of staying up at night when you slept 3 hours the past night is really worth it. The more tired you are the harder it is to be motivated and the harder it is to get things done quickly. I know it may come as a shock to some people, but you can’t live on caffeine and Chipotle alone. Take care of your body and mind.
6. Don’t be afraid to say no.

 
Your time is first and foremost your time. You don’t owe anybody any of your time, so don’t feel guilty if you have to say no to something every now and then. Don’t be rude about it, but also don’t feel obligated to do everything someone asks you to do. Figure out if it is something you want to do and if you have the available time to do it. If the answer to either one of those questions is no, just say no.
 
I hope you found these tips helpful. Time management will always be a struggle, but if you remember to keep these things in mind your life will be at least a little easier.

The following blog post was written by Peer Advisor Kaitlyn, a CCAS sophomore studying Spanish and history.
“I’m so stressed right now,” “I’m totally swamped with work,” and “Ugh I have no time for anything,” are some of the common things I hear from my friends on a given day. Here at GW, it seems that the ‘norm’ is to be overwhelmed by academics, extracurriculars, and having a social life. While your friends might be constantly expressing how stressed they are, what happens if you don’t actually feel that way? It seems that to be successful as a student, if you aren’t completely overwhelmed or overstressed, you aren’t “doing it right.” Being stressed is not an indicator of academic excellence. Why is this the norm? Why can’t someone have a balanced schedule and simply feel confident in what they do? Too often this model is presented as ‘right.’
Stress does not equal success, although this seems to be the predominant attitude at most colleges. Often, when I interact with my stressed peers, it almost feels as if I should be more worried about my coursework. However, it is okay to feel confident in your time management and abilities! Honors students are all a part of a stimulating academic community. We all have the capability of doing well academically, and it is okay to trust yourself and feel confident in your ability to complete your academic goals.
I personally realized this about halfway through my high school career, when my best friends essentially told me to “chill out.” They helped me to realize that I was engaging in the culture of high stress=success, but once I thought about this, I realized it was not true. I learned how to trust myself for the first time. If I knew that I could complete my work and succeed, why did I have to be so stressed about everything I was doing? I was then able to manage my stress levels by consciously changing my attitude about my schoolwork.
Of course, we always have those weeks where it seems that every class has an assignment due at the same time. These unavoidable situations happen, but every week doesn’t have to be completely overwhelming. Try taking a step back sometimes and evaluating how stressed you really feel about something. If you trust yourself to get the work done, you may be surprised by how you feel!

The following blog post was written by Peer Advisor Brianna, an SMPA junior studying journalism and mass communication and political science.
Throughout my time at GW, I have become obsessed with checking off the boxes. Whenever I see a requirement gain that coveted green check mark on DegreeMAP I get a somewhat concerning degree of satisfaction.
Like many dedicated and responsible Honors students do, I had made a four-year plan that I thought perfectly mapped out how my four years at GW would go and everything I would do each semester to make sure that I checked off all the boxes. When Mary says that your four-year plan is just a roadmap to guide you through your four years at GW, that it can in fact be changed, listen to her. If I didn’t become okay with letting myself stray from my four-year plan, accepting the fact that simply checking off the boxes isn’t the best way go about completing my college education, I never would have ended up on the incredible program I am now participating in this semester.
So where am I now? I’m in Los Angeles studying film and television while interning for Dateline NBC and NBC News. I knew I wanted to do a semester abroad, and yes, mapped that into my four-year plan, but I always assumed that I would be doing a program through GW, somewhere in Europe, and that all my classes would smoothly transfer so I’d still be checking off all the boxes. Instead I’m taking three courses this semester, which only actually satisfy two requirements, but are courses that directly relate to the career path I am pursuing and that I would never have been able to take if I hadn’t sought out this program and been ok with not doing things exactly as I had planned. I left enough wiggle room in my four-year plan for senior year to allow me to still graduate on time, with all the boxes checked, even though I’m only taking three courses.
Normally I would be cringing at the thought of only get two checkmarks on DegreeMAP for the whole semester, but the experiences I have already had during my first three weeks here in Los Angeles have proven that the best opportunities can often come out of stepping out of your comfort zone and throwing your perfect plan out the window. (But not totally out the window, because my four-year plan, which will soon become my one-year plan for senior year, is still very much a part of my life with its many changes and edits.)
I can’t believe I almost let my fear of straying from my plan stop me from applying for this program. So basically what I’m saying is pursue the opportunities that you think will be most beneficial for you, even if it those opportunities require you to veer off track from what you thought you needed to be doing. The boxes will all get checked – I promise.