Noting how much time something actually takes will help you estimate better and plan your next study session. Switch off or silence your phones and tablets, or leave them in another room until it’s time to take a tech break. The constant blings and beeps from your devices can make it impossible to focus on what you are working on. Getting up for supplies takes you off course and makes it that much harder to get back to your homework. Gather all your gearĬollect EVERYTHING you will need for the homework you are working on (like your laptop for writing assignments and pencils for problem sets). You won’t magically become a speed reader. However long you think a task will take, try shaving off 5 or 10 minutes.

Estimate the time needed for each item on your list And we mean, everything-from re-reading notes from this morning’s history class to quizzing yourself on Spanish vocabulary. This should be a list of everything that has to be done that evening. Here are 8 steps to make Parkinson’s Law work to your advantage: 1. But even with lots and lots to do, a few tweaks to your study routine could help you spend less time getting more accomplished. We know that you have more homework than ever. How many times have you found yourself still staring at your textbook around midnight (or later!) even when you started your homework hours earlier? Those lost hours could be explained by Parkinson’s Law, which states, “Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.” In other words, if you give yourself all night to memorize those geometry formulas for your quiz tomorrow, you’ll inevitably find that a 30 minute task has somehow filled your entire evening.

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