In this article, I take you through a step by step guide on how to create a productive timetable for yourself. Let’s get this fact right: while others may claim to have the ability to juggle a lot of tasks simultaneously, it is scientifically proven to be harmful. Multitasking actually leads to a drop in productivity and other fatal psychological problems. You might want to research before making a fuss about this.

That leads us to the first couple of rules to follow before delving into creating a personal timetable. Mental preparedness is necessary before initiating any task. In our case, we want to create a productive environment for our studies. What must we do first?

1. Turn off all social media notifications. If possible, put our phones far away to avoid the urge to look through them.
2. Find our peak performance hours. The hours of the day are not equal and we all can attest to the fact that there are times we feel sluggish and times that we feel extremely active. We will then identify these hours and plan our timetable around them. Got it? Good.
3. We also need to fish out the aspects of our academics we fall short. It wouldn’t be logical to spend far more time on our strengths than on our weakness.
4. We also need to anchor our attention by writing down our tasks. Our timetable shouldn’t be vague. It should explicitly say exactly what we want to do at a particular time.
5. Eliminate multitasking no matter what.

Now let’s take the nose dive. Are you ready? You should be. We can begin by writing down the items we need to cover on our timetable – we need to include revision hours, hours for solving questions including past questions, short breaks in between a couple of hours, summarizing what we have learnt, learning a few topics ahead, expanding our own comprehension on current topics we find confounding, etc.

• Personally, I would start off the first 30 minutes with a brief revision of contents from yesterday’s studies to consolidate its place in memory. I would then fly off to tackling any assignments from school. After that is a short break to gather enough momentum for the next task.
• My next task will probably be to solve more questions (including past questions) related to the topic given in the assignment and clear any mysteries by reading thoroughly, leaving no stone unturned. I should feel much more confident tackling similar questions on the topic later in school. I might perhaps take a short break after this.
• I then fly off to reading a few pages ahead of the class and summarizing what I learnt without really bothering about its intricacies – just a surface understanding.
• Now, I should be heading over to some of the topics in school I found difficult to grasp. I probably wouldn’t do that alone. I have to consult someone with a deep understanding. This is where I recommend you join a study group to facilitate that. Through that, you will have the chance to share what you have learnt with your members.

You don’t have to follow the same order as I did. Depending on your needs and abilities, you might have a convenient order for yourself. Remember also that your timetable doesn’t have to be packed to the point where you feel exhausted. Include your yield point into the equation. Personally, I wouldn’t place a lot of task within my timetable as that will have me swooning within a short time. I don’t know about you. Go at your own pace.

It is also essential to break the pattern with regular updates and adjustments. Come on! You can’t be following the same routine forever. Make some changes as time goes on.

You can share with me samples of your personal timetable via ibrahimfaddal@yahoo.com for scrutiny. I will be glad to help you create the best timetable for your personal use. Good luck.