Tips for Staying on a Routine While at Home
The following article was featured in the May 2020 edition of The Campus.
By Clark Adomaitis
We are all at home. Have you been vibing? Do you have more or less free time than you do normally? If you have more free time, what do you find yourself doing? Watching movies or TV? Listening to music? Playing games? Eating? Drinking water? Pursuing a passion? Enjoy the time how you want… however, a lot of us still have schoolwork. With the distance learning model, we lack the structure of physically being on campus at a scheduled class, being surrounded by other students, and surrounded by helpful resources like libraries. We must figure out new tactics to stay productive and motivated… that is just how it is.
Here are some ideas you can keep in mind when trying to make time for school stuff:
Allot a specific block of your day for schoolwork. Only make it a few hours, not all day, if you can help it. Taking a break from it can help keep you sane.
When you complete a task or successfully stick to a routine, reward yourself. Eat a dark chocolate granola bar.
Make time for self-care and fun each day if you can.
Be clear with your professors. If they are overworking you, tell them immediately! Shoot them an email.
If you make a routine and fall off it, it is okay. Try not to get mad at yourself. Instead, clear your to-do list for the rest of the day. Take this as a message that you need a break. Try to get back on the routine tomorrow.
It is easy to get sidetracked, especially when there are distractions at home. If you need to finish an assignment, give yourself a few days to do it. Perhaps allot an hour per day for the assignment.
Allow yourself to have breaks. Snacks are fun, coffee is cool, tea is totally rad.
When you go to bed, write down what you plan on working on and achieving tomorrow. This will help you visualize and actualize what you need to do the next day.
Sample Weekday Routine
Here are some routines that you can try and follow. One is for early risers, one is for late risers, and one is for when you have no work to do and want to chill. Feel free to edit or move things around as you see fit or for when you have classes. Also feel free to just chill all day.
If you are a day worker and a night sleeper:
8:00 AM: Wake up!
8:30 AM: Out of bed.
8:30 - 9:30 AM: Get ready for the day, eat breakfast, put on some different clothes (and shower if you want).
9:30 - 12:30 PM: Focus on schoolwork, with a break for a snack. Write, read, research. Do not look at your phone.
12:30 PM: Lunch.
1:30 - 2:30 PM: I dare you to do something else, like pursue a passion project, practice an instrument, produce music digitally, paint, draw, dance, read, etc.
3:00 - 4:00 PM: Get your blood pumping with some exercise.
5:00 - 5:45 PM: Dinner.
If you are an afternoon worker and a day sleeper:
11:00 AM: Wake up!
11:30 AM: Out of bed.
11:30 - 12:30 PM: Get ready for the day, eat breakfast, put on some different clothes (and shower if you want).
12:30 - 3:30 PM: Focus on schoolwork, with a break for a snack. Write, read, research. Do not look at your phone.
3:30 PM: Lunch.
4:30 - 5:30 PM: I dare you to do something else, like pursue a passion project, practice an instrument, paint, draw, dance, read, etc.
6:00 - 7:00 PM: Get your blood pumping with some exercise.
8:00 - 8:45 PM: Dinner.
Here is a sample routine for a day with no work, which can be helpful if you need to relax hardcore:
10:00 AM: Wake up!
11:30 AM: Breakfast.
12:30 PM: Second Breakfast.
1:15 PM: Minecraft.
3:15 PM: TV/Netflix/Hulu.
5:15 PM: Lunch.
6:15 PM: Walk around the house looking for fresh socks. Fresh socks will make you comfortable.
6:45 PM: Look at your phone or laptop, go on youtube.com (do not check your email).
7:45 PM: Snack.
8:45 PM: Dinner.
9:45 PM: Vibe, listen to music, chill with a family member, call a friend or family member, watch TV.
10:45 PM: Video Games.
11:45 PM: Snack.
