Planning and organization

There are 168 hours in a week, plenty to do if you know how to make the most of your time. And to start with, it’s important to take the time to… plan and prioritize your activities.

As a student, you need to plan on several levels:

By year or semester, so that you have an overview of your deadlines and exams.

• On a monthly basis, to readjust your priorities according to work that has already been done, or new dates for assignments.
• Define as precisely as possible the time allocated to your studies (re-reading courses, updating your notes, assimilating theory and doing exercises) and the time allocated to your social life or leisure activities.
• And to the day. Take a look at your course timetable every evening and adjust your to-do-list as necessary.

The most important thing is to start by establishing your work schedule. Then define the time you’ll be able to allocate to your social life, associations and hobbies.

More ideas for creating healthy, sensible routines: here

When you’ve got a lot on your plate and many demands to meet at the same time, the mountain can quickly seem insurmountable. The risk then is discouragement or avoidance.

It then becomes essential to prioritize and break down your tasks into smaller chunks. It’s a bit like creating the plan and route to climb to the top of a mountain. When you know “how” to get there, it becomes much easier to stay motivated and focused on the next task at hand.

Here are a few tips:

• Make a list of what you need to do. Consult the deadlines for each task and define your order of action.
• Define a degree of priority or urgency, from 1 to 3, to clarify what needs to be solved the same day or what can be postponed to another time.
• Divide each task into smaller chunks. For example, go from “Solve the linear algebra series” to 1. Reread my lecture 2. Clarify unclear theoretical points 3. Watch a tuto 4. Solve the first 3 exercises.
• Take the most difficult subjects when your concentration is at its best, and schedule them for your moments of maximum efficiency. Alternate with easier subjects to keep you stimulated, or tasks you enjoy more. (check chapter “Find your genius zone”).
• Plan some “flexibility” time to finalize tasks you may not have been able to finish. This could be an hour a day that you leave empty, or half a day during your weekend.

Paradoxically, they are essential for maximizing learning efficiency. By planning your breaks on a regular basis, you’ll make it easier to assimilate information. This will help you retain what you learn in the long term. You will also improve your concentration and memory.

The brain has a limited capacity to concentrate intensely for long periods. When this capacity is exceeded, productivity can decrease and errors increase.

Here are some useful tips on how to make the most of breaks:

• Time management: there are several strategies that suggest altering work time and break time. Working time is generally no longer than 50 minutes, followed by a 10-minute break.
• The Pomodoro technique is also well known: It involves working intensively for 25 minutes, followed by a 5-minute break. After four cycles, you take a longer break (15-30 minutes). This helps to maintain optimum concentration and avoid mental exhaustion.
• Digital disconnection: During breaks, try to avoid screens, especially those used for studying. This will give your eyes and mind a real rest.
• Movement: Take advantage of breaks to move around, get up, change position, get a glass of water, open your windows and take a few deep breaths. A short walk, stretching or even some light exercise can improve blood flow to your brain, which will then be oxygenated.
• Change of scenery: If possible, change your surroundings during breaks. Go outside or move to another room to relax and stimulate your mind with a new setting.
• Meditation or deep breathing: Taking a few minutes to focus on your breathing or practicing meditation can help reduce stress and improve mental clarity.

There are times when you’re naturally more productive than others. Your zone of genius is the time of day when you’re naturally the most creative, focused and productive, and the easiest to solve complex questions.

For some, it’s early morning, for others late morning or early evening. To each his own rhythm!

Useful tips:

• Learn to identify your zone of genius by testing your pace and observing your moments of maximum efficiency.
• Once you’ve identified your zone of genius, adjust your pace and schedule accordingly.
• Save the most complex tasks, or those requiring the most creativity or concentration, for those moments. Take care of the easier, more routine tasks outside these times.

Get into a good sleep routine right from the start. To cope with overload, studying every night until midnight or 2 a.m. is a false good idea.

Do you have any idea what goes on in your brain when you sleep?

• Information learned during the day is consolidated.
• Neural connections associated with new information are strengthened.
• Relevant information is filtered and integrated into existing memory networks.
• Recent learning is stabilized, reducing the risk of forgetting.
• Creativity is fostered by the formation of new neuronal connections, enabling a better understanding of complex processes or the emergence of innovative solutions.
• It also promotes healthy regulation of your emotions.

And all this without you having to do anything more than get enough sleep!

In short, protecting your sleep is an essential key to improving your concentration, the quality of your attention, your memorization and consolidating your learning.

It’s also essential for replenishing your batteries and giving you the strength and energy you need to face the challenges of everyday life.

Tips :

• Plan from the outset in your daily schedule the amount of sleep you need to feel good. For example, 11pm-7am.
• At least 1 hour before going to bed, plan an end-of-day routine to help you relax and fall asleep more easily.

Read also: Sleep hygiene – Centre for Sleep Investigation and Research – CHUV

There are a number of work areas on campus: the library, the Rolex Learning Center, and classrooms open for revision. Some of you may prefer to study at home. The important thing is to be in a quiet place that suits you.

A quiet space minimizes distractions and facilitates concentration. If you don’t want to be disturbed, you can inform your fellow students with a “do not disturb” sign.

The answer depends on the tasks you have to perform. For example, when you’re re-reading course notes to understand theory, or have summaries or series to do, it’s worth planning time to work alone.

The group is, however, an important resource, especially when you’re faced with complex problems to solve.

A useful tip is to give yourself 30 minutes to solve an exercise, for example. After that time, if you can’t manage it, you move on to solving what follows, and save your questions for the exercise sessions, the student assistants or your work group.

This is much more efficient than spending hours stressing and despairing about your exercise alone. Remember, you’re all facing the same challenges… helping each other or finding solutions together will save you precious time.

“Without working in a group, I would never have succeeded. It’s in a group that we exchange, share and support each other”. In the words of a former student

A clean space free of distractions improves your concentration.

Clear your workspace and put away anything not related to the task in hand, either in your bag or in an appropriate place.

Needless to say, a phone that rings, beeps or vibrates every 5 or 10 minutes interferes with your concentration and slows you down in the tasks at hand, if it doesn’t distract you from them altogether.

To avoid getting caught up in social media, and arriving at the end of your day having spent 3 hours on your mobile, without doing what you had planned, here are a few tips:

• Turn off your mobile or put it on silent mode.
• Turn off all notifications.
• Put it away or place it outside your field of vision, in your bag for example.

It’s a good idea to finish any other activities you’re doing before getting down to work, so that your mind doesn’t get distracted by unfinished business. It’s a simple way to improve concentration.

In addition, plan the times of day or week when you will complete tasks that are not related to your studies, and postpone them if necessary to those times.

It depends on your habits and the tasks you have to accomplish.

Music, especially wordless music such as classical or ambient, can aid concentration by blocking out background noise, especially for repetitive or creative tasks.

Soft, soothing music can help reduce stress, which can make study sessions more effective. Classical music, jazz or film soundtracks can be particularly helpful. There are also many “deep focus” playlists that can help you concentrate.

However, for tasks that require deep thought or intense memorization, music, especially with lyrics, can be distracting. The brain has to process both the lyrics and the study content, which can lead to cognitive overload.

Some people find all music distracting and prefer to study in silence. It’s a good idea to try out different approaches to find out what works best for you.