How I Use Time Timer: College Edition
By: Corabeth King, Second Year College Student
College has been a huge learning curve, especially with my first year being all online. It was hard to get my feet going when school started, after moving to a new place and beginning an “adult” life, but it was especially hard because I was unable to connect with my peers and classmates. My first day of college was nothing like I had imagined, and simply involved opening my laptop while sitting in my room alone. Right off the bat, it was hard to maintain enthusiasm and motivation. Admittedly, I struggled through most of last school year and it took me more than a semester to really get a grip on things.
My study habits changed from the typical high school methods of reviewing notes and reading the chapters, and morphed into making and taking practice quizzes, tests, exams. I completely rerouted how I tackled school and my GPA was astronomically higher the second semester. I stopped copying notes and started working through problems instead. I stopped rereading chapters and started trying to recall the chapter’s information instead. I stopped trying to study for hours straight, and started using the pomodoro method to help maintain focus.
I had used my Time Timer MOD a lot in high school, mostly when doing my assignments. In college, I pulled out my Time Timer again and started using it during my practice exams (and during my real ones!) to help me stay focused and comprehend how I was truly distributing time per question. Whenever I was going over my practice exams or doing practice problems, concept maps, etc, I would also use my Time Timer to implement the pomodoro method. This is the method of working for a short amount of time (20-30 min), and then taking a 5 minute break, and repeating the process. On days that I did this, I got much more done and I felt like I had stayed more focused.
Furthermore, I used my Time Timer to make sure I was not spending too much time cleaning or organizing. I use cleaning as an excuse to delay doing schoolwork. After all, it is still something productive. But that’s the catch; it’s productive procrastination. To help limit that while still getting my household chores done, it was necessary for me to use my timer to stay on track.
Speaking of cleanliness, I’ve also recently added the Time Timer WASH to my day. The Time Timer WASH made me realize how much I would slack on properly washing my hands. Now that it is a part of my bathroom setup, I am in the habit of washing my hands for the proper amount of time. Even when I am at other places, such as work or school, with no Time Timer, I find that I wash my hands for much longer than I used to. Considering that washing your hands for less than 20 seconds does little to no good, making and maintaining habits of proper hand washing is highly important. The Time Timer WASH helps keep myself and others safe by promoting better hand washing habits.
Both my Time Timer WASH and my Time Timer MOD help me keep my goals in check. The WASH helps keep me and others healthy, and my MOD helps keep me focused and attentive. I recommend the Time Timer (especially the MOD) to my other student friends often because of how much it has helped me. The Time Timer MOD is hands down one of the best study tools for college students to help with focus and time management.