Ways To Stay Organized and On Track
The university schedule and workload can easily become overwhelming, especially for those who have extracurriculars like work or sports. Having ways to organize all of the commitments in your life can make each day easier to approach and complete. Below are the ways that have helped me stay organized and on track throughout my 4 years at UVic.
1. Use online organizers like Notion, Reminders app, Calendar, and Excel.
Notion
The online platforms shown above, Notion and Excel, are both free and efficient ways to organize your schoolwork, life, and take notes. Personally, I use Notion to take notes for my university classes, create to do lists, and journal. Notion is free to create an account, although you can pay for premium features which I don’t think is necessary!
I like to use Excel when its functions and formulas can come in handy. As shown in the photo above, I used Excel to organize all the assignments and such for my classes so I can keep track of my grades for each class and what I’ve completed.
I also like to use my Reminders app on my iPhone to make sure I don’t forget little daily tasks, like doing my laundry or picking up groceries.
2. Plan (and prep) meals for your week on Sunday.
To save time and money, plan your meals for Monday-Friday on Sunday and grocery shop accordingly!
You can even prep and cook all your meals into containers so you can heat up each meal on the go or eat it cold.
This way, you only make a big kitchen mess one day of the week and don’t have to spend time after work or school cooking and cleaning. Tip: have lots of containers and tupperwares in your kitchen for this.
Sunday tip: do all your household chores and errands on Sunday to that you’re stocked up and organized for the week ahead.
3. Find a balance between work and rest.
It’s important to make time for your hobbies and rest outside of school and work. Focusing too much energy and time on university courses and shifts at work can cause you to burn out.
Even if your workload is heavy, take a break every once in a while to do something for yourself that gives you energy back instead of taking energy away! Like going for a short walk or watching an episode of your favourite show.
If you’re someone who will not rest until ALL the work is done, then it may be helpful to actually schedule in the time to relax and rest into your calendar.
4. Journal every day to set goals and keep track of important things.
Journalling can be a great outlet to write/type your thoughts, feelings, ideas, opinions, struggles, goals, hopes, dreams, and whatever else you need to release. There are many platforms that you can use to journal, whether you like to type on Notion or handwrite in a notebook.
Creating a daily habit like journalling, especially in the morning, forces your brain to activate, think, and release any thoughts that are causing anxiety or sadness or anger. I like to use Notion to journal and set goals so that I can access it online wherever I am and easily edit each journal entry if I need.
5. Use UVic resources to support you.
Here are some resources that new students may find helpful for their life at UVic:
