21 Ways to Get

the Most Out of Now

The following 21 time management techniques are about when to study, where to study, how to
handle the rest of the world and things you can ask yourself when you get stuck. As you read,
underline, circle or otherwise note the suggestions you think you can use.
Pick two or three techniques to use now. When they become habits and you do them
automatically, come back to this article and pick up a couple more.

WHEN TO STUDY whereas three shorter sessions might yield

as much as eight hours of productive time.
1. Plan two hours study time for every When you do study in long sessions, take a
hour you spend in class. There are planned break every hour. Focus your
exceptions, but this is a good general rule. attention for short periods, then give your
It’s also one that few students follow. brain a chance to take a break.
Students making the transition from high Finally, if you must study in a large block of
school to higher education are often unaware time, work on several subjects and avoid
that more is expected of them. If you are studying similar subjects back to back. For
taking 15 credit hours, plan to spend 30 example, if you plan to study sociology,
hours per week studying. The benefits of psychology and computer science, sandwich
following this rule will be apparent at exam the computer course between psychology
time. and sociology.

2. Study difficult (or boring) tasks first. If 4. Be aware of your best time of day.
your chemistry problems put you to sleep, get Many people learn best in daylight hours.
to them first, while you are fresh. Most of us Observe yourself, and if this is true for you,
tend to do what we like first, yet the courses schedule study time for your most difficult
we find most difficult often require the most subjects when the sun is up.
creative energy. Save the subjects you enjoy Many successful business people begin their
for later. If you find yourself avoiding a day at 5am (or earlier!) while most of us are
particular subject, you might get up an hour still asleep. Athletes and yogis use this time,
early to study it before breakfast. With that too. Some writers complete their best work
chore out of the way, the rest of the day will before 9am.
be a breeze. (If you discover that you Unless you grew up on a farm, the idea of
continually avoid a subject, that course might being conscious at 4am might seem
be a potential trouble area. Take a look at ridiculous. Getting up that early is like
the circumstances of this behaviour.) jumping in an icy mountain lake. After the
initial shock, your body comes alive.
3. Avoid scheduling marathon study Very early morning is a beautiful time. The
sessions. When possible, study in short world is quiet. Inner voices are less insistent.
sessions. Three three­hour sessions are far Spiritual leaders of all persuasions have
more productive for most people than one recommended predawn as a time of
nine­hour session. In a nine­ or ten­hour meditation and prayer. The mind is better
study marathon the actual time on task can able to focus before it is assaulted by the
be depressingly small. With 10 hours of jangle of telephones, traffic and top forty
study ahead of you, the temptation is to tell tunes.
yourself, “Well, it’s going to be a long day. If you aren’t convinced to use this technique
No sense getting in a rush. Better sharpen regularly, test it when you’re in a time crunch.
about a dozen of these pencils and change Even if it doesn’t work for you, you might get
the lightbulbs.” In the 10­hour sitting you to see a sunrise.
might spend only six or seven hours studying,
© Student Learning Support Service
Victoria University of Wellington | www.vuw.ac.nz/st_services/slss | +64 4 4635999
The key point is to determine your best that happens, notice the thoughts and let
learning time. If early morning doesn’t work them go.
for you, find out what time is better.
10. Agree with living mates about study
time. This includes roommates, wives,
5. Use waiting time. Five minutes waiting for husbands and kids. Make the rules clear,
a bus, 20 minutes waiting for the dentist, 10 and be sure to follow them yourself. Make
minutes between classes – waiting time adds explicit agreements­ even written contracts.
up fast. Have short study tasks ready to do One student always wears a colourful hat
during these times. For example, you can when he wants to study. When his wife and
carry 3x5 cards with equations, formulas or children see the hat, they respect his wish to
definitions and pull them out anywhere. be left alone.
Also, use time between classes or breaks
during work to review class notes or notes on 11. Avoid noise distractions. Don’t study in
reading. A solid review of a lecture can be front of the TV. Turn off the stereo. Many
completed in 15 minutes, and even five students insist that they study better with
minutes can be valuable if you are prepared. music, and that may be true. Some students
have reported good results with carefully
WHERE TO STUDY selected and controlled music. The
overwhelming majority of research indicates
6. Use a regular study area. Your body that silence is the best form of music for
knows where you are. When you see the study.
same place to study, day after day, your body
becomes trained. When you arrive at that 12. Notice how others misuse your time.
particular place, it will automatically sense Be aware of repeat offenders. Ask yourself if
that it’s time to study. You will focus your there are certain friends or relatives who
concentration more quickly. consistently interrupt your study time. If
For that reason, don’t sleep or eat where you avoiding the interrupter is impractical, send a
study. Just as you train your body to be alert clear message. Sometimes others don’t
at your desk, you also train it to slow down realise they are breaking your concentration.
near your bed. Don’t eat where you study. A gentle reminder should do it. If your
Don’t watch television where you study. Use message doesn’t work, there are ways to
your study area for study and make it a ritual. make it more effective.

7. Don’t get too comfortable. In bed, your 13. Get off the phone. The telephone is the
body gets a signal. For most students, it’s perfect interrupter. People who wouldn’t
likely to be, “Time to sleep,” rather than “Time think of distracting you when you are busy
to study!” Learning requires energy, so give will call at the worst times because they can’t
your body a message that energy is needed. see you. For your part, it is easy to
Put yourself in a situation that supports that rationalise interrupting your study for a phone
message. call. After all, it wasn’t your fault the phone
rang, and besides, you don’t want to be rude.
8. Use a library. Libraries are designed for You don’t have to be a telephone victim.
learning. The lighting is perfect. The noise If a simple, “I can’t talk, I’m studying” doesn’t
level is low. Materials are available. Entering work, use dead silence. It’s a conversation
a library is a signal to your body to quiet the killer. Or, short circuit the whole problem:
mind and get to work. Most people can get You are unlikely to receive phone calls at the
more done in a shorter time at a library. library.
Experiment for yourself. If you assume that you are responsible for all
the telephone calls you receive, you take
HOW TO HANDLE THE REST OF THE control of the situation.
WORLD
14. Learn to say no. This is a valuable
9. Pay attention to your attention. Breaks timesaver for students, and a valuable life
in concentration are often caused by internal skill. Many people feel it is rude to refuse a
interruptions; your own thoughts jumping in to request. Saying no can be done effectively
tell you another story about the world. When and courteously. Others want you to
© Student Learning Support Service
Victoria University of Wellington | www.vuw.ac.nz/st_services/slss | +64 4 4635999
succeed as a student. When you tell them Accept lower standards where appropriate,
that you are busy educating yourself, 99% especially where time is short.
will understand.

15. Hang a “do not disturb” sign on your

door. Many hotels will give you one free, just 19. Ask: How did I just waste time?
for advertising. Or you can make a creative Notice when time passes and you haven’t
one. They work. Using one will relieve you accomplished what you planned. Take a
of making a decision about cutting off each minute to review your actions and note the
interruption – a timesaver in itself. specific way you wasted time in the same
ways over and over again. When you have
THINGS YOU CAN ASK YOURSELF noticed things you do that kill your time, you
WHEN YOU GET STUCK are more likely to catch yourself in the act
next time. Observing one small quirk may
16. Ask: What is one task I can save you hours.
accomplish toward my goal? This is a good
technique to use on big, imposing jobs. Pick 20. Ask: Would I pay myself for what I’m
out one small accomplishment, preferably doing right now?
one you can complete in about five minutes, If you were employed as a student, would
then do it. The satisfaction of getting one you be earning your wages? Ask yourself this
thing done often spurs you on to get one question when you notice that you’ve taken
more thing done. Meanwhile the job gets your third popcorn break in 30 minutes. Most
smaller. students are, in fact, employed as students.
They are investing in their own productivity,
17. Ask: Am I beating myself up? When and sometimes don’t realise what a mediocre
you get frustrated with a reading assignment job may cost them.
or when you notice that your attention
wanders repeatedly or when you fall behind 21. Ask: Can I do just one more thing?
on problems due for tomorrow, take a minute Ask yourself this question at the end of a long
to ask yourself how you feel about it. Are you day. Almost always you may have enough
scolding yourself too harshly? Lighten up. energy to do just one more short task. If you
Allow yourself to feel a little foolish, recognise get into the habit of working until you are
the feeling, and get on with it. Don’t add to done, then doing one more thing, those end­
the problem by berating yourself. of­day tasks will soon add up. The overall
increase in your productivity will surprise you.
18. Ask: Is this a piano? Carpenters who
build rough frames for buildings have a
saying they use when they bend a nail or Exercise #5
hack a chunk out of a two­by­four. They say, The roaring lion
“Well, this ain’t no piano.” It means
perfection is not necessary. Use this exercise to take a break and relax during
Ask yourself if what you are doing needs to long study sessions.
be perfect. You don’t have to apply the same 1. Draw in a deep breath: then exhale
standards of grammar to review notes that hard through your mouth.
you apply to a term paper. The basketball 2. As you force your breath out, open
your eyes wide and stick out your
player who refuses to shoot until the perfect
tongue.
shot is available may never shoot. If you can 3. Spread your fingers apart and stretch
complete a job 95 percent perfect in two your arms downward.
hours, and 100 percent perfect in four hours, 4. Hold your breath for a few seconds.
ask yourself whether the additional five 5. With your mouth closed, inhale
percent improvement is worth doubling the deeply through your nostrils. Allow
amount of time you spend. your abdomen to rise.
Sometimes it is a piano. A tiny mistake can 6. Breathe out slowly through your
ruin an entire lab experiment. Computers are nostrils. Relax.
notorious for turning little errors into
Repeat three times. Try it once now.
monsters.

© Student Learning Support Service

Victoria University of Wellington | www.vuw.ac.nz/st_services/slss | +64 4 4635999
STUDYING WITH CHILDREN UNDERFOOT

Studying with young children in the house presents interesting challenges. It is possible to combine
effective study time and quality time with children. Make the activity called “study” a game and
have them join in.
Studying chemistry with a three­year­old is not as preposterous as it sounds. The secret is to choose
the kind of studying that the child can participate in. For instance, use this time to recite. While
studying chemistry, make funny faces as you say the properties of the transition elements in the
periodic table. Talk in a weird voice as you repeat Faraday’s Laws. Draw pictures and make an
exciting story about the process of titration. Use kids as an audience for a speech or for practicing
any mnemonic device. If you have invented rhymes, poems or songs to help you remember
formulas or dates, children can learn them right along with you. Kids are attracted to energy,
enthusiasm and love. To them, the content of the conversation is less important.
The attention span of a young child may range from several seconds to maybe 30 minutes. Do not
plan to read new and complex material in the presence of a conscious two­year­old. Most people
require about twenty uninterrupted minutes to acclimate their brains to complicated reading
assignments. Chances are a toddler will interrupt long before then. Instead, choose short review
tasks, like going over previous class notes. You can set up the child with her own desk, just like
yours, and even offer rewards for getting her “assignment” done. While she colours, you can work
on your notes.
Tell the child how important studying is to you and how you appreciate her cooperation. Reward
her with attention and praise when she is quiet. When they are included in the process, children a re
less likely to resent schoolwork as something that takes you away from them. Rather, it becomes
something you do together.

Journal entry #13

1. Spend five minutes brainstorming ways in which you waste time. Write down everything
that comes to mind. Be sure to limit yourself to five minutes.

2. Take a few minutes to think about your list. Pick two time wasting habits that you use
most, and write a note to yourself about why these time wasters are so attractive to you.
Write about the payoff for using them. Then write down what the cost is. Do this as if you
were writing a note to someone else, and write it to yourself.

3. Take a few minutes to review your list from step one above and write down three time
wasters that you are willing to give up.

Extracted from “Becoming a Master Student” By David Ellis

© Student Learning Support Service

Victoria University of Wellington | www.vuw.ac.nz/st_services/slss | +64 4 4635999