Dear Reader,

I don't know about you, but I seem to be getting worse and worse at making plans and organising time for things. I'll look at my schedule for the day, see a few lectures dotted about and immediately think – ‘Oh no – I haven't got time for that coffee I was meant to be having with a friend.'

It is almost like I have calendar drunk goggles on– as soon as I look at my planner, everything magnifies and swells to take up all my time so I couldn't possibly squeeze anything else in and I immediately rush around at 100 miles an hour, stress flying off me like streamers in the wind.

Sometimes as soon as someone suggests a plan, I immediately think: ‘I haven't got time for that!' and get a surge of panic when I haven't even looked at my timetable yet!

Granted, there are actually those times where I am literally running around like a headless chicken on speed with a million things to do and deadlines to meet – such is the uni life. Most of the time, however, I've found – I have wayyyy more time than I usually think I do.

As a person who is pretty prone to stress and negative thinking, I've learned that giving yourself a moment to sit back and pre-prepare for those hectic moments immediately makes your problems look ten times smaller.

If you just look at the gaps in your schedule rather than the jam-packed sections, things look a lot more manageable, especially if you lay things out and plan them ahead in your planner or phone. This is key to just feeling less stressed and giving yourself time to do other things that you actually want to be doing – like seeing that film at the cinema, or finally having lunch with that one friend you said you'd have lunch with about a year and a half ago, who you've been snap chatting with an interspersed ‘I miss you, I HAVE to see you' every few weeks. (Don't try and deny it, we're all guilty.)

A lot of the time I think we feel guilty if we spend our time relaxing or doing things that aren't productive – especially when we have a lot on in our school/work lives, but I think it's so important to just breathe. Take that time for yourself to clear your head - self-love and all that! Its ok if you still feel guilty about not getting on with ‘Important' stuff, but I think it's all about balance. Yes get your work done, but once it's done treat yourself! It's so important to not run yourself flat and bury yourself so much in work and stress that it overwhelms you.

I think either you're born a list person or you're not. I for one, am very much a list person – I write lists of the lists I've written. Everything I need to do in a day I write down and once everything is off that list – even if it means tying it over to tomorrow's list, then I can relax. Sometimes even mundane things like ‘cut your nails' or ‘wash your hair' are one there. This helps disperse the big daunting tasks a bit and makes crossing things off a little less arduous. Even if the idea of lists make you feel a bit queasy – just give it a go.

Managing time is a skill that takes a lot of refining and working out. I've been at Uni for months now and I've been doing life for a lifetime and I'm still trying to figure out how to balance my time effectively! Everyone needs different amounts of time for different things, so making sure you know how much you need is ideal.

Knowing where to cut back is also key. I don't know about you but I am the type of person who wants to do EVERYTHING. Every club, class, activity, I want to be a part of it and try it out. The same goes for committees, plans, and even friendships, so if you're anything like me, the notion of cutting some of those things out of your life might seem heinous.

It is often far harder to say no to something than to say yes. However, after you've made that hard push for a no and the fear of letting anyone down has subsided, you suddenly find you have a little more breathing room. I'm not saying get rid of everything you find fun and enjoyable and practically can do without – just the things that admittedly aren't making you any happier, or that is just asking too much of you at the current time. Pass times and hobbies should add something to your life not be draining. The same goes for friendships and relationships – make time for them if they're worth it, but if they become a burden more than a gift, maybe it's time to think whether it's a benefit to your life and your time and be just that little bit selfish (much easier said than done, I know).

So there we have it, a rather rambling, longwinded way of sharing a few thoughts on making time or even making use of your time if you like!

Hebe x

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash