Hello! My name is Thomas, and I make it my goal to always think ahead.

As a student in college, most fellow students understand the pressure of juggling life, homework, perhaps a job, family, friends, and other obligations. It can be very difficult to manage these obligations, but I have found that planning the activities of life BEFORE they happen allows me to control chaos much more easily. I think that it is very important to learn how to think ahead, so that you reduce the stress of fear, uncertainty, and doubt and enables you to do everything you need to do with a clear mind.

Let me share three things that I've found to help me think ahead.

1. Write down everything that you will be facing on a constant basis for a designated period of time.

For example, I know that I have three classes to take this semester, I know what the deadline dates are, I know about how long it takes to do the work, and that helps me to do everything in a timely fashion and get it out of the way before I go on to fun things that I want to do. I also work in the week, and I know that I need to allow for the time that it takes to do that, as well as knowing that I cannot study during that time. Therefore, I must do my work at another time, even if that means that I have to give up free time because of it. These are just a few examples of obligations that a person could have, but I encourage you to write down everything you will be doing so that you not only know your work time, but you can better define your free time.

2. DO YOUR WORK.

It is very easy to be lazy and procrastinate. I am one of the world's worst procrastinators. However, I have found that as soon as I sit down and focus on what I have to do, the fun stuff is replaced with the responsibility that I have before me, which is to do the schoolwork that I spent a lot of money on. It's also a good habit to put your electronics away from you during your study time, but in order to treat yourself for doing your work, I recommend that you set a time, say after you've worked a certain amount of time on your lesson, to reward yourself by getting your phone out and looking at it. Doing your work and AFTERWARDS rewarding yourself for it is a great motivator to keep working. If this doesn't work for you, find out your work and reward system.

3. Allow yourself some time to relax.

Rest is SO important to human's well-being. I personally try to avoid doing assignments at the last minute because I know that I'll be working when I want to sleep, and I LOVE my sleep. I need it. So that's why I plan ahead, so that I can prepare for rest time. I HIGHLY recommend that you find something that interests you and do it. (Once you've finished your work that is.) No one remains mentally healthy by constantly having to deal with work, deadlines, and the like. Play is just as important as work, just in a different way.

These are some mindsets and activities that I use to help me prepare for the chaos which is life. Even if my methods do not work for you in the same way, I encourage you to find a system of control that will allow you to manage your life effectively.

Please feel free to comment with your self-management techniques. I would love to see them!