One of the most common questions I get asked is, “Lauren, how do you balance everything? You’re soooo busy!” I would say the term “busy” is an understatement. I have always been one of those people that always stretched out too thin. I like being busy because it keeps my mind constantly going but sometimes it can be too much.
With taking 18 college credits, working two jobs, being president of the largest organization on campus, running a nonprofit organization, being a new homeowner and collaborating with brands, I don’t have a ton of spare time for myself during the week.
The truth is, some days, I don’t know how to manage it all. Sometimes I want to sit on my bathroom floor and cry my eyes out from all of the stress. I have to remind myself that I do this to myself because I know I can handle it. I then give myself a pep talk in the mirror, remind myself who is the boss, and pick myself up to be the boss lady I am.
As you can see, I am far from perfect. I do not have it all together but I’ve learned some ways to help my make life easier along the way. Here are some tips and tricks that have helped me become more productive and avoid weekly mental breakdowns.
I keep a planner. I know probably every article and productivity website recommends this. I think it helps because when I write something down, I feel super compelled to do it. I also will write the to-do list on a sticky note on my computer and post it in the corner. It’s basically a reminder that I have things to do and I need to get off Pinterest and get it together.
I use Buffer to schedule my social media posts for my personal account, my nonprofit, and this class. (MASC 336 for those not in my PR class) I can’t keep constantly tweeting and posting 24/7 but I need to ensure I’m still active on my social media platforms especially as an aspiring PR professional. I often schedule my posts every ten days (recently I’ve been slacking at this) and I pick three times a day to schedule my posts. I also will just queue posts of Facebook, Tumblr, YouTube, and my blog. By using the social media scheduling apps, I feel less guilty about not being on social media but I am still being active.
Another tool that you’re probably sick of hearing about but I absolutely swear by is Google Calendar. My trick for this to make my calendar more efficient is I make multiple different calendars. I make one for my sorority, alumni group, academics, work, plans/appointments, The #YouDefineYou Project, blog and YouTube posts, and then I also have access to my boyfriend’s calendar so I can see what he has planned. This is a lifesaver honestly. I recommend that everyone use this because it has helped me get my life together. I also send reminders to people to attend my meetings so that way they can mark it on their Google Calendar as well.
I always ask people to email me important information instead of texting it. I currently have 90 unopened texts on my phone. For myself, I tend to lose or forget to answer texts because of how many I get. If important information is emailed to me, it’s archived and more likely to get responded to.
I label my folders in my email accounts and create filters for them. I keep my inbox organized so that way I can sort through emails easily.
I give people my schedule. I make sure to email everyone my schedule so that they have it so they know when I’m available. This creates super clear communication for everyone. I do this through the app YouCanBookme. It has my schedule pre-loaded onto the app and then people are able to schedule appointment times with me based upon my availability. It then send myself and the “booker” and email confirmation where I then add it to my Google Calendar and then send a calendar invite.
I constantly am carrying my business cards. Sometimes, I meet someone I want to connect with but I don’t have the time to keep chatting with. When this happens, I give the person my business card filled with all of my information and ask them to send me an email so I can schedule a later time to chat. I always want to make sure that I am connecting with people and leave no stone unturned.
I save important information to the app, Notebook. Notebook has changed my life. It syncs with my computer, iPad, and iPhone to keep track of things that I have previously written down. I create to-do lists, write reminders and upload information that I need to remember for later. I personally like it a lot better than the downloaded Notes app on standard Apple products.
Notebook App
I avoid going on social media after 10 pm. Social media keeps my mind constantly spinning and it takes a lot of energy to process the information. It’s important to me to be able to get a full eight hours of sleep and I’m not able to do that if I’m on my phone aimlessly scrolling through social media late at night.
I try to avoid working on the weekends which includes responding to emails or engaging a ton on social media. I am not a super responsive person to anyone on the weekends unless it’s an emergency. The reason why is because I feel like it’s important to take time for myself and live in the moment. Since I’m always busy, I need some time for myself and my boyfriend. I don’t want work, school and social media to consume my life to the point where I am unhappy and make others around me miserable. I think it’s important to take time for yourself and spend time surrounded by others that love you. Life is too short to be stressed all the time.
One of the most important steps to keep being successful is to I sure take care of myself. If I’m being completely transparent, I’m still learning how to do this but I’m getting better. I make sure to always take my mental health medication and keep myself in a good headspace. One thing that sometimes we take for granted as a society is our health. Maintain our personal health mentally and physically is so important. Without your health, you will be absolutely miserable. In high school, I was sick for eight months and after that experience, I will NEVER take my health for granted again.
Lastly, I make sure to surround myself with positive people and keep a positive attitude. When you are busy, it so easy to get caught up with negativity and to feel the need to constantly complain. However, you want to make sure that you aren’t surrounding yourself with negative people. Recently, my boyfriend taught me about the difference between a minor inconvenience and when to freak out. I’ve realized that most things in my life that go wrong are minor inconveniences that can be easily fixed and won’t be relevant in a month. By keeping myself in a positive mindset and surrounding myself with positive people, I feel that I am able to get more accomplished and feel better about being so busy.
I really hope that some of these tips were helpful or at least was an interesting read. I know life can be stressful but in reality, we are all human going down different paths. Stress is a healthy emotion that we feel but of course like anythings, it’s important to not have too much of it. Remember that you all are capable of anything you put your mind to.