Never too late to start a routine
As we start to close out the third week of school, a good portion of us are starting to get into our daily routines of what works best. However, there may be a few who decide to wake up and go wherever the day takes them. While it can seem like we’re going with the flow, it can be detrimental to our overall success in school.
In a study done by the National Library of Medicine, people in good health participated in routine health behaviors such as eating well and getting regular exercise. While those are routines college students should already consider adding if they haven’t already, there are other routines college students have to think about. These include time for homework and studying, carving out social activities and even managing school around a work schedule. Northwestern Medicine found benefits of routines are numerous such as managing stressful situations, getting better rest and having a better outlook.
It’s hard for students to get into the swing of things the first few weeks of school. There isn’t much done the first week except reviewing syllabi and completing an easy assignment or two. The second week is short due to Labor Day. By the time the third week (and the first full week) rolls around, students can become exhausted after having an easy-going time. The study done by the National Library of Medicine found routines take longer than the previously thought 21-day time period. Routines can take anywhere between 18 days and eight and a half months, depending on what the routine is.
A lot of students tend to think if they haven’t established a solid routine in the first two weeks of school, they’ll fall behind. While starting a routine sooner rather than later provides the best results, getting into a routine the third, fourth or even fifth week of school can still provide successful results. It’s important for students to look at what they already do daily, what they aspire to add to their routines and then look for times in their day or week to add it to their schedule.
What deters people from not adhering to a routine (and most New Year’s resolutions) is the setback of one day. Life happens and there may be certain events that throw off our established routines like sickness, vacations or tests in three hours we forgot to study for. One day off our schedule does not mean we waved the white flag in surrender. We have to jump back on our “routine horses” as soon as we can after we fall off them to keep our routines on track.
Changing our habits doesn’t happen overnight. If we try even adjusting one or two small parts of our lives to our school schedules, we can find it helpful for getting through the school year successfully and well. Just because New Year’s Day is a little over 100 days away doesn’t mean we have to wait until then to make changes. Finding the routine that works best for us allows us to have the best school year we can make, all while bettering ourselves in the process.