How to Balance School and Social Time

Posted by Anonymous , 9/4/2007 Tags:BalanceSchoolSocialTime
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How to Balance School and Social Time

Introduction

Being a good student doesn't mean you have to drop everything else. It's possible to have a healthy social life while earning good grades. It's all about balance, young grasshopper.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Steps

1

Step One

Decide for yourself at the start of the term that you won't let schoolwork sweep you away. It's important to have this resolve as a foundation.
2

Step Two

Plot out your weekly schedule on a grid. Chances are, you'll have small gaps between classes during the week, and longer stretches of free time on the weekends.
3

Step Three

Focus in on those small gaps, and highlight them on your grid: It's here that you can do bits of schoolwork, leaving the larger weekend gaps free.
4

Step Four

Set aside at least one large chunk of time each week for free time - maybe all of Saturday, for instance.
5

Step Five

Make sure that every time you find yourself in one of those between-class gaps, you use the time efficiently: Read a few pages, run some quick errands, spell-check your paper.
6

Step Six

Keep in mind the law of diminishing returns. Past a certain point, studying harder will yield little. You're better off using that time to hang out with friends.
7

Step Seven

Consider making rituals out of your transitions between school and social time - some people need this. Maybe just a walk around the block will do the trick. You're a student when you start your walk; you're a person when you return.
8

Step Eight

Encourage your friends to follow a similar plan, so you can coordinate your free time with theirs.

Tips & Warnings

  • Protect both your free time and your school time religiously. If you start to infringe on either, it's a long, slippery slope downward.
  • Whenever possible, find social activities that take you off campus and away from your schoolwork.

Overall Things You'll Need

  • Electronic Personal Organizers
  • Personal Organizers
  • Academic Counselings
  • Palm Handheld Organizers
Tools: |