Not Organized? Read This

Organization has never been easy for me and college doesn’t make it any easier. I can’t even remember how many times I misplaced assignments in high school. In high school a missed assignment was not that big of a deal, but in college it has a much bigger impact on your grade. You have to stay organized to succeed. It took me only took a couple weeks in college to realize I would have to change my old habits to be able to excel in college. Here are a few tips that helped me and hopefully they will help you too:

1. Use your planner. This is a great way to stay on top of all your assignments, appointments, meetings etc. I never used a daily planner until I went to college. I realized it really helped me remember what was due and when. It’s also a good idea to have a calendar hanging in your room. Put it in a place where you can easily see it so you’ll remember any important dates.

2. Check your email. It’s a good way to keep in touch with you teachers. Usually sometime within the first couple days of class your professors will give out their emails, I strongly suggest writing them down. I know it’s helped me if I’ve missed a class or am having trouble with assignments. If you’ve joined any clubs, fraternities, or sororities you will constantly be getting emails since that’s their main form of communication.

3. Have a binder for each class. This will help you keep you’re assignments for each class separate. I also find it helpful to have each binder a different color so you will easily recognize what binder is for what class. There has been so many times where I have grabbed the wrong binder because they all look similar.

4. Have a place for everything. It’s a good idea to have all your personal items in one area, and you school books in another. You have enough stuff to worry about and trying to find something doesn’t have to be one of them. I use the bottom drawer in my dresser to store all of my school material, so when I’m in a hurry I can easily grab it.

5. Don’t procrastinate. There’s nothing worse then having so many things to do and have not enough time to do them. The article How to Stop Procrastinating suggests setting deadlines and not letting yourself break them, also do unpleasant tasks first to get them out of the way. This will make you more motivated to get the easier things done.

6. First things first. Do the most important things first. Make sure you get assignments done before you have leisure time. It’s also helpful to make a list of things you need to get done; this will help you evaluate which ones are most important.