As a current Year 9 student, I’ve already started implementing strategies in order to stay productive and on top of my studies. While things get quite difficult from time to time, and I fall to procrastination too many times to count, I still try to be as productive as I possibly can be. Here are some methods and techniques that I’ve picked up over the past few years to be and stay productive!
1. Finding a Time Where You are Most Productive
One of the things that I’ve definitely found helpful is to experiment and find a time where you are most productive. By doing so, you are able to do most of your work during a specific time period, which if you doing consistently, will turn into a routine. For me in particular, I work the best during the mornings, when I have the most energy and the weather is the right environment for my learning.
2. Have a Studying Routine
Having a routine is especially important, as it allows you consistently work during your most productive hours. By sticking to this routine, it’ll turn into a habit, and just like that, being productive will be like second nature to you! However, having a studying routine is difficult at first to set up. Creating habits are the easy part, but sticking to them – Now that’s the hard part. Consistency is key when having a routine and starting new habits. It’s also difficult for those who have many extra curricular activities like I do, but this is where time/task management plays into being productive.
3. Time/Task Management
Time/Task management is organising your tasks so that you have to do the things that you need to. By prioritising your tasks, you are able to complete what’s really important, and then do less important and smaller tasks later. Also, you need to eat your ugliest frog first thing in the morning! By this I mean completing the most important and urgent task first – the one that you usually procrastinate on the most, and scares the hell out of you. Once you complete this ‘frog’, you are bound to feel more productive and ready to tackle all your other tasks.
4. Listening To Music
Listening to music is a technique that I have used while studying. For some people, music can be distracting, but I find it helpful having something in the background so I stay productive while still feeling relaxed. Music helps calm me down, and reduces my stress levels. One strategy I’ve found especially helpful during the holidays, is to listen to slowed down songs which have already been made into playlists. I really like the playlists made by SheKills, which vary in length from 25 minutes to 50 minutes. By playing this in the background while I complete my tasks, I use this as my ‘study timer,’ and I take a break once the playlist is finished.
5. To Do Lists
Having a to do list for the day makes life a whole lot easier. There are a number of apps out there including Notion, ToDo List, and Google Calendar, which allow you to write down your tasks for the day, as well as having other purposes. Even writing your tasks on a simple pad and pen works like a charm! Having a to do list just shows you what you need to complete, and it’s much more helpful to write it down than trying to remember 10 different things in your mind.
I’ve only included 5 different techniques, and I definitely will write a part two for this blog post and include more techniques! I hope some of these strategies will help you become more productive!