In my freshman year of undergrad I pulled an all-nighter every single week. Sleep, I had decided, was at the bottom of my list of priorities. My idea of studying involved me sitting in front of my computer for hours on end while I scrolled through social media pages and occasionally skimmed notes. As you can imagine, I \u201cstudied\u201d all the time. It was common for me to even miss meals to spend more time in the library. Since starting graduate school, however, if there\u2019s an event or task that requires me to get less than 7 hours or sleep I know that it\u2019s just not happening. My life hasn\u2019t gotten any less busy in grad school, I\u2019ve just gotten better at maximizing the time I do have and prioritizing the important things in my life. Like sleeping and eating. So how did I go from the poster child of procrastination to a graduate student who still manages to sleep, work, and socialize?<\/p>\n
I know we all joke about our procrastination habits, but I\u2019ve actually learned how to take advantage<\/em> of mine. I used to have the mindset that I should focus on one thing at a time, starting with whatever was due soonest. While that may be a good strategy for some people, that\u2019s just not how my mind works. Now I often switch between assignments while I\u2019m studying, making it less likely for me to get bored with any one project and ultimately give up for the day. I have also learned NOT to prioritize what is due the soonest. This seems counterintuitive, but it prevents me from wasting time on what may be objectively less important assignments. In the past, if given two days to finish a 1-hour long lab, there\u2019s a good chance I would have taken those entire two days, wasting time on social media while I pretend to work or spending too much time perfecting my answers. I\u2019ve instead learned to take advantage of the time that I\u2019m actually feeling productive to work on less pressing, but more tedious tasks, such as writing longer papers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Taking advantage of the times when you\u2019re feeling productive is also important for being more efficient. Do you tend to get more work done in the morning? Schedule your days so that you can do your studying or working then. Take a few days to observe yourself before you come to any conclusions. I used to think, because I\u2019m a night owl, that sleeping in and working later was the best schedule for me. I started to realize, however, that even though I like staying up late, I became less productive after 5 or 6 PM. The rare days I would wake up early, were the days I got the most done. If you had told me a year ago that waking up before 8 AM would become routine for me, I probably would have laughed. But thanks to this schedule change, I actually have time to relax in the evenings.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also useful to keep in mind that what study or work habits work for some people might not work for you. Maybe listening to music helps your roommate focus, but you always have to stop and sing the lyrics. When beginning grad school last year I heard of the Pomodoro Technique<\/a><\/strong>, where you study for say 25 minutes and then take a 5 minute break. I decided to try it and see if it increased my productivity. Quickly I noticed that getting myself to start<\/em> a task is often the hardest part for me, so I tended to take much longer than 5 minutes during breaks. Now I\u2019ve learned that if I\u2019m on a roll with an assignment, I should keep going and instead take a longer break later on when I need it. Maybe you’re like me, or maybe you’re a Pomodoro evangelist – only you<\/em> know what works best for you<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n One of the best ways to be efficient is to simply not attempt a task that you know you don\u2019t have time for. This seems obvious, but it\u2019s one of the hardest tips to follow. In my freshman year of college I remember having a breakdown thinking of all the assignments I would somehow have to finish in a single week, realizing I didn\u2019t have time for all of it. Then suddenly, I realized how much more time I would have if I sacrificed even one night of sleep per week. Sleep became optional to me, and so the all-nighters began. Now, sleep is a given. If I don\u2019t have time to complete every task in a day without sacrificing sleep, then I have no choice but to accept the reality that I simply will not accomplish everything<\/em>. As a result, having his mindset has forced me to be more efficient with the time I do<\/em> have, because I understand that it is limited. Your time is a finite resource, and understanding its boundaries will help you frame your mindset appropriately.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Ultimately, becoming more productive is a matter of doing what works for you<\/em>. Following habits that go against your nature will only waste your time and energy. Most importantly though, don\u2019t forget to make time to rest<\/strong>, because no one is productive when they\u2019re burnt out.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Featured Image by Green Chameleon<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In my freshman year of undergrad I pulled an all-nighter every single week. Sleep, I had decided, was at the bottom of my list of priorities. My idea of studying involved me sitting in front of my computer for hours on end while I scrolled through social media pages and occasionally skimmed notes. As you…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7367,"featured_media":67768,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-prospective"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/files\/2021\/08\/green-chameleon-s9CC2SKySJM-unsplash-e1628782310110.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pamvW4-hD1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":80702,"url":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/student-opportunities\/gra-position-emory-school-of-medicine","url_meta":{"origin":67767,"position":0},"title":"GRA Position, Emory School of Medicine","author":"Alex Whicker","date":"March 13, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Part time position\u00a0 (Spring-Summer-Fall) Emory Department of Family and Preventive Medicine seeks a Masters or Doctoral trainee candidate who will assist in\u00a0recruitment for pilot clinical trials and data analyses for\u00a0larger longitudinal databases.\u00a0The research questions are focused on interventions for patients with heart disease\u00a0and dementia.\u00a0The research efforts are vital to improving\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Student Opportunities"","block_context":{"text":"Student Opportunities","link":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/category\/student-opportunities"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/files\/2019\/08\/download-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":82143,"url":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/student-opportunities\/graduate-research-assistant-bshes","url_meta":{"origin":67767,"position":1},"title":"Graduate Research Assistant, BSHES","author":"Erica Schipper","date":"January 22, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Job Title: Graduate Research Assistant (GRA) for Research Hours per week: 15-20 hours\/week Position Type: Part-Time Organization: Rollins School of Public Health Operating Unit: Rollins School of Public Health Department: Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences Position Description: This faculty member seeks to hire a Graduate Research Assistant for federally-funded\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Student Opportunities"","block_context":{"text":"Student Opportunities","link":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/category\/student-opportunities"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":81574,"url":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/prospective\/good-habits-to-develop-at-the-start-of-your-semester","url_meta":{"origin":67767,"position":2},"title":"Good Habits to Develop at the Start of Your Semester","author":"Erica Schipper","date":"September 11, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Written by Kaylan Ware After being away from your studies for the summer, it can be difficult to reestablish a routine that works for you. 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Start by considering what\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "PROspective"","block_context":{"text":"PROspective","link":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/category\/prospective"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/files\/2022\/09\/emory-ohp.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/files\/2022\/09\/emory-ohp.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/files\/2022\/09\/emory-ohp.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":81338,"url":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/epi\/student-opportunities\/graduate-research-assistant-cancer-survivorship","url_meta":{"origin":67767,"position":3},"title":"Graduate Research Assistant, Cancer Survivorship","author":"Erica Schipper","date":"July 31, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Hours per week: 15-20 hours\/week Position Type: Part-Time Organization: Rollins School of Public Health Operating Unit: Rollins School of Public Health Department: Behavioral, Social, and Health Education Sciences Position Description: This faculty member seeks to hire a Graduate Research Assistant for federally-funded cancer-related projects. 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Your time is a finite resource<\/h2>\n