Happy December, Gaels!
I’m super excited that it’s finally December. I’m thrilled to enter the Christmas season and to be energized and healthy. For the last two weeks, I’ve been sick. Even though I got the flu shot from Queen’s Wellness in early November, the common cold took me down.
I was sneezing, sniffly, and coughing. It did not feel good at all. Plus, I couldn’t stay up late to work on any assignments; there were several instances when I went to bed at 8 PM or 9 PM and slept for eleven to twelve hours because my body was too tired and needed to recover. Thus, I started to get behind on course content.
Just when I began to recover, I had a wisdom tooth extraction. It hurt. A lot. I needed several days to recover and lots of antibiotics, ibuprofen, and codeine. My cheeks swelled up to the point where you’d think I’d stored up all my food in there for the winter, as if I were planning to hibernate until spring. I wish I could!
During these times when I’m tired, recovering, and know that final exams are in the immediate future, I like to make what I call a “grand plan.”
The grand plan
Planning is the easiest starting point when I am not feeling 100% or falling behind. Planning—one of the best ways to manage time and beat procrastination—is crucial as a student. Half the work is done for us when we’ve already scheduled everything (or even something).
One of the biggest causes of procrastination is feeling overwhelmed. We don’t know what to do or where to start, so we do nothing. When we have a plan, we can just focus on the next task on a list or in a schedule instead of getting stuck thinking about what to do.
Right now, my “grand plan” needs to address my current issues:
- I am still recovering from being sick,
- I am still recovering from my wisdom tooth extraction,
- I must schedule and attend coffee chats + meetings with the students I volunteer to mentor,
- I have a job interview in four days,
- I am behind on course content (I have finished one course; I have five more to go),
- and I have two major assignments, one large project, and one big test before the semester ends and final exams start.
Start making your “grand plan” by doing what I’ve done here. Note down the upcoming deliverables/issues that you need to address! Listing them all out is a great way to figure out what you need to do and allows you to see what you need to prioritize visually.
From my list, recovering is the biggest priority. I can’t focus in class or learn properly when I don’t feel well, so I have to ensure that I get adequate sleep and keep taking my medication. Most of my coffee chats and meetings have been scheduled, so I just have to show up and be my best self! I already had two conversations with previous interns for my upcoming job interview to learn about their experience and how I can do well during my interview. There is not much else to do to prepare other than do a little research the product and company.
After recovering, the biggest priority goes to school, the content I must catch up on, and the deliverables. In terms of assignments and tests, I have to rigorously review content to understand the assessments, so I’m hitting two birds with one stone – catching up, in this case, is the same as studying and prepping for assessments.
I’m time-blocking my calendar—not always hours at a time, sometimes just a few minutes here or there—to ensure I review all necessary content. That means looking at when my deliverables are due, then allocating time throughout the week with the time needed to finish those deliverables. Within each “study session” time block, I list the tasks I have to do: specific course videos to watch, which questions to do for homework, etc. The more specific AND realistic I am, the more I can accomplish. “Finish 2 questions from MTHE 351 homework 9” is a lot clearer and attainable than “Do MTHE 351.” As I finish each task, I can check them off, and I’m one step closer to finishing the semester!
If you are also a bit sick like I was and need a TLDR: make a grand plan to end the semester with how and when you will finish your deliverables. Make a schedule, time block, etc., so you can allocate the necessary time for your health, studies, and breaks! And remember: pushing yourself super hard right now might set you back in the long term. Take it slow and steady, finding small blocks of time, and setting goals that you can reach. SASS’ expert academic skills specialists can always help if you’re not sure where to start.
By my next blog, it will be 2023. Woohoo, we (almost) made it through 2022! I wish you (and me) the best of luck and the happiest of holidays. You deserve it.