Journal Entry #14

1. My self-management skills have really proven to be inefficient. It was very difficult to manage 5 classes, freshman seminar, and mandatory tutoring, and working Friday-Sunday. I did not have any time for recreational activity. I did not really have a system that I followed which resulted in poor quality of homework, low test grades, etc. For most of the semester, I relied on my classmates to help me keep up with homework and studying. I did my homework the night before in a matter of an hour or less which means that I did not give it my best effort. As for tests, toward the beginning of the semester, I only did my homework but did not study. I thought that doing my homework would be enough, unfortunately, it was not. The first semester served as an eye opener to what I should do to prepare and stay organized for next semester.

2. For me personally, none of the five self-management tools in this chapter really work. I’ve tried something similar to the Project Folder, but it makes me more organized with all the work I have to do, but I don’t keep up with it. The Monthly Calendar would probably work best for me since I have done weekly schedules. I try to follow them to the best of my ability by setting realistic dates. My weekly schedule is usually written so I may want to try to use my phone this time and perhaps it can be more effective. What I think makes my written weekly schedule ineffective is that it is not always in front of me. I always stuff it in my bag and never see it until later on in a week. By using my phone, I can set a reminder at each time I need to work on a different task. I will use an app or just the calendar on my phone.