Prewriting
Establishing a routine that helps me balance my studies, work, and family is a very hard thing to do. I always had fears before I joined college how I would be able to accomplish my academic goals while still working my two jobs. I always trusted fate when the time came, but from my own experience, I have been able to understand that it is a complicated issue. Overload and dedication help me focus on strategies and methods that can help me establish a balance between the three aspects of my life that are key to my success. A caregiver in nursing is my first job, which is very much demanding but still allows me enough time to focus on the other two aspects of my life. This job requires me to report in by 1:00 pm, and it is in three hours. I provide all the essential services that I am required to do. My job requires somebody who is dedicated since I have to monitor a patient for three hours every day.
After leaving my job at 4.00 pm, I have an hour before I report to my second job, which is being a waiter at a restaurant. Before I report to my second job, I utilize one hour by doing physical exercise. Most of the days, I go running in the park for forty minutes that leaves me enough time to prepare for my second job. I report for my second job at 5:00 pm, where I have to serve a restraint during one of the busiest times of the day. Most people come in for their supper during my shift, which ends at 8:00 pm. During this job, I am under a lot of pressure since they’re a lot of orders coming, and I have to take off all of them. This requires all my attention, and leaving this job, I am exhausted, but I take as a way of learning in life. After leaving work, I go home where I get to spend time with my family. I help my family carry out various activities, like serving dinner and washing the dishes. At times we may watch a movie with my family before I start doing my homework. I usually do my homework from 10:00 until I complete it despite the time. The next day I wake up as early as 4:00 am to go over the materials that I have been learning in school, and it takes me at least two hours. After 6:00 am, I go to the shower and get ready for school. During breakfast, which mostly served at 7:30 am, I can interact with my family before leaving for school and them leaving for work. I leave for school at 8:00 am since most of my classes begin at 9:00 am. I have different classes throughout the day, and I have to be fresh to understand and keep up with the instructor. During my studies, I don’t let my exhaustion or stress from my work or previous days harm my studies since it takes a lot of hard work to graduate. All my classes are done by noon, which gives me ample time to get ready for my work. During the hour before reporting for my job at 1:00, I spend time with my friends, which helps me understand my classes better.
One of the strategies that I applied to find a balance between the three aspects of my life was to install a time management app known as Trello on all my devices. It helps me keep track of my various activities throughout the day. The application has a well-organized board and card system that has boards assigned to each of my projects and a card for each task hence eliminating the chances of confusion and forgetting. All the activities of my day are arranged in order and can be easily tracked by implementing various performance lists. The application also helped increase collaboration in all the three aspects of my life since it provides team features that allow me to engage in various group meetings. These features also allow me to upload and share various files using the app, allowing me and my coursemates to have a virtual discussion hence saving a lot of time that is consumed when we are meeting physically. The application also has searching filters that help me locate my desired more quickly compared to searching for hard copies of these files. This helped in my studies since I was able to consult my friends whenever I have an issue with my homework, and this is very appropriate for my studies. Trello also has a power-up calendar that helps me to prioritize tasks according to their final deadline. Another strategy that I applied to find balance was to organize my study room as per the classes that I was going to study next. Arranging my study materials in that manner helps me locate my books and other academic resources easier in the morning before heading for school. The application also has automated reminders that notify me of any impending deadline or time to switch activities. I also designed a shopping routine that helps me buy the appropriate goods for any given time hence allowing me to replace any product before they run out. I also asked my siblings to assist me with various chores when I get home to save the time required to carry out any activity. Since I do most of the studying at night in my room, I had to eliminate anything that may distract me when I am studying. I sold my PlayStation intending to save more money that helped me buy various studying materials that have helped me a lot in my studies. My two jobs also become a source of inspiration for me since they are rewarding hence teaching me an important life moral that there is no good deed or hard work that goes without being rewarded. I also asked my parents to give me more time to study; hence they reduced the number of responsibilities that I had at home. This helped me to put more energy into three areas of my life hence creating a balance between them. After implementing these strategies, I have been able to create one of the most efficient routines suited for my life since it helped me create a balance between the three aspects of my life. Now I am more comfortable with my life and time-efficient, thus increasing the probability of me achieving the various goals that I have set in my life even after college.