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College has two basic functions: the first is to educate you so that you'll have the knowledge you need to succeed in the "real" world; the other is to ingrain the work habits in you that you'll need if you ever want to be able to accomplish anything. The classes you take are supposed to take care of the knowledge angle, and your grades will by and large reflect the extent to which you have acquired the knowledge you were supposed to. Your work ethic, how organized you are, and other non-quantifiable factors that affect job performance will all be crucial to you the minute you enter the job market, so you have to develop the skills and habits in college.

There are some people out there who have a built-in mental calendar that tracks all of their appointments, homework assignments, and activities effortlessly, but most of us don't have that particular gift. And for that unfortunate majority of which we are members, a system is necessary that acts as a substitute. Be it a physical looseleaf notebook in which to jot down the day's events, a laptop with a "notes" or "calendar" function, or even (as in my case) a cellphone or an iPod that alerts me when there are things I have to do.

Not only does this make life considerably easier for the average person, it's good practice for the days ahead, when you might get fired for forgetting that you had to be somewhere at 9 AM on the dot. I have found that it is far more convenient to rely on an infallible electronic buddy to keep track of my homework (which now gets in on time or even early almost all of the time) than it is to count on my easily distractible brain. I haven't missed a doctor's, dentist's, or optometrist's appointment in a year, which has not only saved me the time and energy involved in rescheduling, but it has also saved me the money I used to pay in penalties for missing the appointment without canceling it.

College students, listen up! Planners are cheap and easy to come by, they're easy to use, and they never forget anything. You'll save time, energy, and money, and you'll be getting ready for life in the business world. To cap it all off, your grades will go up, because your assignments will be on time, and you won't be as stressed because you'll know about those assignments long before they're due (unlike your friends who don't have a planner, who will find out the day before when you ask them if they've written their 12-page essay yet). There is NO downside to a planner, and all the advantages you could dream of. Get one before you regret not having gotten one.

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