I don't know how I would have survived college without a day planner. As my mom likes to say, "I would forget my head if it wasn't attached"! My day planner was probably my most prized possession during my college years and I was never without it. Succeeding in college is all about properly managing your time and if you don't know what it is that you have to do, you can't manage your time effectively.

I had several friends in college whose grades were suffering due to their lack of organizational skills. I urged them to get day planners and while they were reluctant at first, once they got used to the idea of writing everything down, their grades began to improve and they were hooked!

Using a day planner allows you to keep track of all of your assignments, even the smaller ones that would otherwise slip your mind. It also helps you to organize your assignments by their due date and can be referenced at any time. When you jot due dates or assignments down in your notebook or on the back of a random sheet of paper, you may have a hard time locating the information when you need it. It's also a very satisfying feeling to be able to cross assignments/tasks off of your list once you have completed them.

College is also the first time that many students have to deal with the responsibility of paying bills. You needn't have a separate day planner for your classes than you do for the rest of your life. It's best to have everything right there in one place where you can see it on a daily basis. You can keep track of when your electric bill or car insurance is due, as well as doctor's appointments and meetings.

Most day planners have a typical yearly calendar section where you can write down important meetings, appointments and exams, as well as separate section that allows you more room to go into detail for each individual day. For example, in this section you can write down your class schedule, what homework you have due or what new homework is assigned, a to-do list for the day, etc. There is also typically a section where you can record important contacts, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdays, etc.

There are a lot of fabulous day planners available for purchase at stores like Office Depot or Barnes and Noble that have a lot of great features, but it is really up to you what you would like to use. I always preferred a larger planner to a smaller one, because it gave me more room to write legibly and was easier to read. However, small planners are nice because they will fit in your purse as well as in your backpack.

You don't necessarily have to buy an actual day planner. You can use a notebook, three-ring binder or even your laptop to keep yourself organized. Some people actually prefer to do this because it allows them to design their planner to fit their specific needs. However, many prefer a store-bought planner because it already has everything set up and organized for them.

No matter what you prefer, keeping some sort of day planner can be really beneficial, even if you think that you have a great memory. It can be very stressful trying to remember every little thing. If you aren't focusing on remembering dates and assignment details, you have more room in your head for what you should be learning.

Learn more about this author, Marie Gerber.
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