Although the resurgence of COVID-19 and online classes came quite suddenly for all the students, many have adapted to the new lifestyle after months of online learning. In fact, many students have devised ways in which they could improve themselves using the time that has been saved from online classes. Below are some of the effective time-management tips students wanted to share, which will be helpful for the summer holiday life.

For me, the most useful tip in terms of time management is probably keeping a to-do list. Making lists is a great way to organize my routine right at the beginning of the day, so the first thing I usually do when I wake up is write a list of everything that needs to get done in my day. I don't overload myself with unrealistic goals, but usually give myself two main tasks and two to three other trivial tasks, and I review my checklist at the end of the day to see what I missed so I can catch up the next day.

Aside from a daily list, I also make review lists as final exams approach. I create a list in which I categorize all the important points I want to go over again before the exam. Below is my review list for Human Physiology, but I also have several other lists for different areas, and yes, the categorization is helpful.

Another thing that might help with productivity is background music. I think it really depends on personal tastes for music, but at least for me, listening to music while I work causes me to be much more productive. Almost all music platforms offer such playlists that you can choose from.

As a final note, study efficiency is really directly correlated with work-life balance. Sitting for hours without moving is not a good way to increase study efficiency, as your body quickly gets fatigued, and this is where necessary relaxation chips in. Find something fun to do that does not require you to sit and stare at a screen for extended periods of time! Usually after studying nonstop for two hours, I stand up to take a look at my plants in the greenhouse and spend half an hour with them. Then, when I go back into "focus mode," I feel a significant raise in my efficiency and can focus better as well.

（Written/Pictures by 11(2) Claire    Supervised by Menglei Wang  Reviewed by Qian Zuo）