Studying can feel overwhelming, mainly when working full-time and studying part-time because you are tired when getting home and have family waiting for your undivided attention. Sometimes, you may even feel the day needs more hours for everything.  

I found the best way to overcome this is to plan my day, prioritise tasks, and schedule my assignment’s due dates. Prioritising my activities ensured that I had adequate time for my studies.

We all study differently

Some students need more time, while others focus better under pressure. From my experiences as a former student, I needed to prepare well in advance for assignments rather than leaving them for the last minute and then being under pressure. Doing a little bit daily and limiting distractions was the key to my success.

Distractions came in all shapes, sizes, and sounds.

My social calendar, cell phone, background noise, and house chores were just some of the things that distracted me from my studies.

My social calendar is usually jam-packed, and I enjoy spending every moment I can spend with my family and friends. Nothing is better for me than enjoying a braai or birthday party with my people and creating new memories. Unfortunately, I could not accept every invitation while studying, and the most challenging thing for me was to say: “Sorry, I cannot attend because I have to study”. It made me feel I was neglecting the people closest to my heart, even though they understood that my studies were critical to me.

My cell phone was my biggest distraction as I am used to taking it everywhere. On top of that, being a curious person, I always want to check what is happening on my home screen. For example, whenever my phone beeps, I want to check who sent me a message, and it better not be a Facebook notification because then I am in real trouble. This could turn into hours of scrolling through the latest feeds.    

Background noise

Background noise was another major distraction for me. For example, I would be busy studying and then hear the soundtrack of a Netflix movie or children playing. These ‘noises’ would cause me to leave my books and instead join my mother and sister for a short while to watch our all-time favourite movie. When my neighbour’s children played outside, I would greet them quickly. They would often call their mother to join in the conversation, which would regularly chat and laugh for another hour or two, leaving my books all forgotten.

House chores became a convenient distraction or, should I say excuse not to study or work on my assignments. I would negotiate with myself to quickly do the washing, laundry, or vacuum the floor and then promise to return to my studies as soon as I am done. I have to admit that this way only a way to keep myself occupied with anything else apart from studying or doing my assignments.