Throughout my first semester at Ohio State, I have grown in many ways. The drastic difference between the college and high school atmospheres was immediately apparent. A major area of personal growth throughout this semester has been my ability to mange my time efficiently. College life requires a strategic management of my time. Compared to high school, we have a seemingly endless amount of free time. Something that caught me off guard was that there is always something that needs to be done. Despite the immense amount of free time in my day, I still felt as if I was falling behind. I needed to find a way to keep track of assignments and organize each day, so I can remain productive and ahead of schedule.

I researched ways to manage my time better, and I found two methods that helped me immensely. I created a calendar with all of the days remaining in the semester on one sheet of paper and added all assignments and tests onto it. This allows me to see my entire semester at a glance and work to keep ahead of things. I also started making a daily sticky note, I write all of my assignments I need to complete from the semester calendar as well as any other tasks I need to complete on a given day. Creating a daily to-do list on sticky notes also helps me reflect on what I’ve accomplished each day, seeing a fully completed list is a good feeling. By using these methods, I can plan ahead and get my assignments done and submitted a few days in advance. It took a while for me to develop my time management skills as high school came naturally for me, assignments were easier and did not require as much time or effort as my current coursework. Using these strategies and learning to manage time efficiently over the semester has been an important lesson that I value having learned.