With school, extracurricular activities, clubs, and hanging out with friends you have lots of things to do and not a lot of time. In this article I hope to give you some ideas to help you get better organized and make the most of your time.

The first suggestion is to start by organizing your time. You can organize your time by creating a schedule. When I create a schedule, I like to organize it by color and time. If you are a visual person like me, start by picking out an organizer, agenda book, or wall calendar. Then select a different colored pen for each subject. Write down important due dates, big projects, and dates you have big tests. By using different colors, you can quickly glance at your calendar and see what you have coming up over the next few days and weeks and how they all connect to other assignments on the same subject.

The second suggestion is to organize your space and to focus. To organize your space, it is good to have a nice tidy desk, and somewhere that is quiet enough so you can focus on your work. Try not to multitask. It makes it harder to focus on the assignment at hand. It also makes your work sloppy, and it takes longer than it should. To help you focus you can listen to music or sound-blocking headphones, whichever one may help you more .

The third suggestion is to not procrastinate. I know it is hard to get things done, especially when it may not be your favorite subject. You still have to do the work though. A way I like to get my hard assignments done is to do an easy assignment, then a hard one, and then an easy one. It is a nice way to separate the workload. For me, sticky notes are a lifesaver. I write down important reminders, motivating quotes, and other things to help me stay on track. Cute stickers are also an amazing way to keep you motivated. Put a sticker next to completed assignments on your planner. It’s like having a cheerleader.

Finally, don’t try to do too much at any one time. It is important while studying to space it out. You are not going to retain all the information if you just study the night before. Take time reading through the material. Highlight things and write down notes. It will help you later when you are trying to remember what you read.

The most important thing with studying is to find what works for you. Different things work for each person. But success only happens if you make a plan and act on it.