5 ways to improve work-life balance as a student | Wonsulting

Hey everybody, welcome back to our YouTube channel. I'm Jonathan Avier, the CEO of Juan Solting, and today I'm gonna talk about a topic for students. We're gonna talk about how do you balance work and life in school. I know that school can get overwhelming. You go from summer to now a part-time or a full-time position in school, plus you have school and it's really hard to manage. Today I'm gonna tell you some tips of exactly how to manage your time and have that work balance because you need it, especially for your mental health. Step one, you must prioritize. So a lot of you may know this if you work in corporate, but there are a lot of different things you can do to prioritize your work. Number one, what I like to do is put them into priority queues. Now, what does that mean? So you have priority queues, P0, P1, P2, and P3. P0 means that you need to get the specific task done quickly and efficiently, and it's on a time crunch. Ones that are lower on the priority list, let's say the P3s and P4s, those are ones that could be put off to later. What I like to do is incorporate these Eisenhower principle. The things you can do later, things that you can put off for now, things that you can delegate, and things you just don't have to prioritize. By doing so, you'll be able to prioritize your work and see exactly what needs to get done. So for example, in school, you probably have homework assignments that are due throughout the week. What you do, and let's say that it's due in two days, that's probably P0. Also, if you have work and you have a project due, it's probably P0 as well. However, let's say that you're trying to watch TV or you're trying to watch Squid Game and finish it, it's probably a P4. Be sure to prioritize your different tasks through these channels, and you'll see exactly what you need to prioritize and get it done. Step two, calendar blocking. Now, why is this important? And what is it? Calendar blocking is utilizing your calendar, whether it's on Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook, et cetera, and blocking it off based on what classes you have, what work you need, or what tasks you need to accomplish. Example, when I was in school, what I would do is the following. I would utilize Google Calendar because for me, at UCR, we had our mail, which is basically UCR email. What I would do is I'd put my classes into my Google Calendar. I'd put them exactly when I'd have them, where my lectures are. I'd also put when I had work, so I'd put them all into different colors. So for example, my classes for business would be blue. My work would be red. By doing this, I color coordinate exactly the different tasks that I need to get done. Then what you do is in Google Calendar, you can put a task that is all day, and the tasks that is all day are actually tasks that are due on that day. So for example, if I had a test on Friday, what I'd do is I'd put it as all day. I would put it in a specific color, let's just say green, and it would say test business 106, for example. By doing this, you now know that your test is at the end of the week, and also you know exactly what you're doing throughout the week because it's color coordinated. Also, what I'd highly recommend is be sure that you, your work, and your school is aligned. Now what does this mean? You should be transparent with your work of when you have classes, and you should not skip classes because you need to work. Be sure to be transparent with the work that you're doing or with that specific manager because they should be willing to work around your schedule, especially if you're in school. Step three, work smarter, not harder. Now the misconception is that the more hours you put in to studying, to doing work, the more output you'll get. It's completely false. What I'd recommend is the following. When I was in school, of course I would take notes throughout my class, but utilize your peers and friends who are in those classes and consolidate notes. So what I would do is I'd be put into study groups with my friends, and we'd study together, and we'd consolidate notes together. By doing this, we'd cut time dramatically to study for tests, to complete homework, and crush our projects. Another thing as well is when you are studying, be sure not to have distractions. The reason why people cannot study efficiently is because they are distracted, whether it's through notifications from their Instagram, whether it's someone calling them on the phone, whether it's someone texting you. Be sure to turn off all of your notifications by putting it on Do Not Disturb, and you'll see a dramatic difference when you are able to focus on studying rather than being distracted and going on social media sites. Lastly, another thing you can do is go to your professor's or your TA's office hours. I wish I knew this earlier on when I was in school, but when I was in my last year, I was able to get most liaise because I went to my office hours for my TAs and my professors, and I always asked questions which I didn't know the answer to. That would also mean that I would build rapport so they knew me and who I was, and usually what would happen is sometimes I would be on the borderline of getting an A-minus, and what I would do is send them an email. I'd be like, hey, I've been to your office hours. I really need this A. Please let me know what I can do. And what would happen is they would bump me up because they knew me. So be sure to utilize your office hours and ask great questions. Step four, it's okay to say no. Now, why is this important? What happens a lot is that you'll be given a lot of different tasks, whether it's for work, for projects, for your classes, and it's okay to say no. A lot of people will take a lot on their plate and they'll think that they can accomplish all these different tasks, when in fact, you truly do need help. So what I'd recommend is if you are feeling overwhelmed with your work, if you're doing a task that you are not passionate about, but you know someone else could help you with, ask for help. If you never ask, you never know. And if you never ask, the answer is always no. So be sure to ask your peers for help, whether it's through studying, completing specific tasks, or if you're at work, tell your manager. Just be like, oh, hey, I have a very important test coming up. I need to prepare for it. Could I work this amount of time and work after the test? Be transparent with them, because what'll happen is they'll be transparent with you too. Another part of saying no is, if there are extracurricular activities, let's say that someone invites you to a party or a get together and you have a test the next day, say yes if you've already felt like you already prepared, but it's okay to say no. There's gonna be a lot of other opportunities where you can do these extracurriculars or you can do these events. So be sure to say no when you can, and it's okay to do so. And last but not least, step five, be sure to take care of yourself. Your mental health is extremely important. What happens is a lot of people will get overwhelmed with school, work, and life. A lot of different things will happen. Maybe things that you won't expect, spontaneous things. To avoid burnout is to not put a lot on your plate to get to that point. It's okay to ask for help from people. It's okay to go to your office hours and ask questions to your teachers. It's okay to look at someone else's notes and utilize them as your own, as long as they have discretion. Be sure to utilize these strategies so you can live a prosperous life when you're in school. And so you don't burn out and you can be optimistic and happy. And lastly, be sure to rest. I try to get six to seven hours of sleep. I know people say eight hours, but at least try to get six to seven. Rest is key because it'll make you feel better the next morning. Thanks for taking time to watch this video. Really appreciate it. And if you have any tips to having a great mental health or having a good work-life balance, comment them below. And if you enjoyed this video, click that thumbs up button, subscribe to our YouTube channel and check out these videos if you need any more help so you can turn from an underdog into a winner. I'll see you on the next one.