How to Balance High School

Lately I feel like I've had a lot of time management and "advice" sort of posts, but they have been so relevant to my life and have really been on my mind. I want to make sure I am writing topics of enough variety, but sometimes I have a certain idea that is more applicable to my life at the moment and it comes most naturally to me to write about them. Plus, I'm guessing a lot of high school and maybe even college girls can really relate too. Either way, balancing school and senior year in general has been kind of a struggle for me these past few weeks, and so I thought I would share some ways I have been juggling it all!

+ Use time at school efficiently
As hard as it is to not socialize or leave during a free period, take advantage of any free time at school and get ahead on everything you have to do. Even a simple task like doing a quick worksheet or printing a paper will allow you to get to bed earlier at night. Some of my friends are super into this idea and others aren't, so know which friends won't distract you and get homework done together!

+ Prioritize 
Every night, I take a look at what I have to do and make a list based on what has to be done first. So say I have an Economics paper due the next day, English reading due the next day, and a Science lab due in two days. I would do the paper and reading first, and then get a head start on the lab if I have time. If it is 11 or 11:30, I sometimes get to bed instead of getting more done because I literally can't function without 6.5 hours at the absolute minimum. Know your body and when you work best - I often can get more done later at night, but then I pay for it the next morning. Figure out what works best for you!

+ Take advantage of weekends
If you barely got any sleep during the week, be sure to get in some extra hours during the weekend. It's hard to force yourself to not stay out as late as you want, but you will thank yourself Monday morning. My biggest struggle is adjusting from going to bed around 11:30 on school nights, 12:30 or 1 on weekends, and then transitioning back into my school sleep schedule come Sunday night. Try to stick to your school sleeping schedule as much as possible so that your body doesn't have to take a few days to adjust back to going to bed and waking up earlier (I know, it's hard!).

+ Put away electronics!!
I honestly cannot stress this enough. Since it is senior year, some people take homework less seriously, but it is honestly just as important as junior year grades, especially first semester. As tempting as it can be (take it from a girl with FOMO), hide your electronics in another room, and if you have to use your computer, make sure you install SelfControl so you are forced to stay off social media and can focus on your work. This is seriously a game changer for me - if I have my phone by my desk, I can't even tell you the amount of times I will check it to avoid a long reading or studying for a test.

+ Take short but meaningful breaks
A quick walk in the fresh air, a fruit smoothie or a bubble bath are sometimes all you need to get back to feeling refreshed and ready to get more done. Just make sure you keep an eye on the clock and limit yourself to no more than 30 minutes - after this amount of time I am out of the productive mindset and feel more like going to bed than doing homework.

Balancing everything I have to do this year has been difficult, but if I stick to these tips I notice such a difference in my time management and sleep schedule. Your health comes before anything else, so be sure to keep that in mind! 

Do you have any other tips? Have you been dealing with this too?

xoxo