Time Share

Time Management Tips for the Student Athlete
by Prashanth Murthy

Student athletes don't have much free time. They are responsible for the same school work as other students, but they have less time to do it. With practices, games and workouts, athletes must do their work faster just to keep up. Add to that extracurricular activities or jobs, and it's easy to see why so many athletes fall behind in school. Factor in the classes missed for away games and tournaments, and it's clear that students not only have to work faster, but also learn faster. How a student athlete manages their time often determines how well they do in school. Below are some tips and things to think about.

Get Used to Life on the Go
Athletes spend most of their time after school moving around. For students who don't drive, there is much time spent waiting for rides and sitting in buses. Rides are often late, and things don't always start on schedule. This is a good time to take care of small tasks. Try to always have some work handy that can be done in short intervals. Typical activities include making flashcards, reading a book, or doing a worksheet. 

Even if you only work for a few minutes, that time adds up. Also, it's good to get in the habit of using down time to figure out what needs to be done later. Even if you don't have anything to work on, use your planner to make a list for later that day.

For students who drive, a lot of time is spent in transit. It's important to plan your travel wisely. Try to schedule activities so that your drive is as efficient as possible. Some pointers are to plan your day so you are usually heading in just one direction. Keep in mind when things close, what roads are busy and when traffic is bad. Also, if you need to do things such as eat dinner or meet a friend, try to pick places that are in between your other destinations. Whenever possible, make your farthest activity the first or last stop.

Whenever you can accomplish multiple things at once, you save a lot of travel time. If you have to meet a friend to study, but also get dinner, see if you can do both at the same place. The less places you have to go, the better. If you can get books in audio form, you can put them on your mp3 player and listen to them while you work out or while you're driving.

Catching Up
Athletes miss a lot of class time. Not only do they have to make up the work, they also have to learn the material on their own. The important thing is to make up the work as soon as possible. The longer you wait the easier it is to forget the little things. Sometimes you won't realize you missed anything important until weeks later. Keeping track of what you missed will help you figure out if you're falling behind.

Some students use tutors, but there are other options as well. Be sure to communicate with your teachers and give them plenty of notice when you'll be absent. Get make up work before you miss class whenever possible. Try to stay in touch via e-mail so they can update you as to what happened in class, what work you need to make up, etc.

Usually sending a quick e-mail is easier than waiting for a teacher  to remember. They have a lot of students, so it's easier for them to keep track of an e-mail than something you told them in class. It's also easier to e-mail a teacher as soon as you think of something, rather than trying to remember in class.

When picking a tutor, make sure they can teach you new material. Most tutors can help you finish an assignment, but athletes need tutors who can identify the important parts of a lesson, and foresee which skills you will need later.

Remember, your tutor is trying to teach you an hour lesson and help you finish your work (usually all in an hour). Also, look for flexibility. Your schedule might change and they should be able to accommodate that. If you miss a session, you might be two weeks behind by the next one.

Try to find a friend or fellow student in each class with whom you can meet or talk with. Sometimes a phone call will work, but other times you will want to sit down and talk about what happened in class. The key is to make this a regular event. That way your friend will know when you're gone and remember to keep track of important things. Treating your friend to a meal is a good way to meet, save time and say thanks.




Plan Long Term
Have access to a large calendar (one where you can see the whole month at once). Planners are useful for writing down assignments or making to-do lists, but they don't help you see ahead. Fill in major time commitments (games, tests, etc.) as soon as you find out about them. Even if you don't need to think about them for a long time, it will help you plan.
When you add activities or schedule a tutor, you can see what times work best for you. And if you need to cancel a session, you'll know in advance and can plan around it. As you write things down, notice when you are especially busy.

If you have a tournament one weekend, and a big project the following Monday, you know that you need to start earlier and plan to finish when you're tired and short on time. Just as important is to notice the times you aren't as busy. Use this time to catch up on errands you've been putting off, and to set aside some time to relax.

Know Yourself
People are different. Some people work better during the day, others at night. Some like to finish everything and then relax, whereas others need to take regular breaks. While it is important to develop good study habits, it's also important to recognize your bad ones and plan accordingly.

If you don't work well late at night, set a time to stop working, and wake up early to finish. If you tend to work well at night, spend the hours after school or practice taking care of other things. If you get stressed out when there are lots of things to do, make sure you balance your work.

On slow days, get some things done that will help when you are busy. If you can't study with distractions, make sure you're away from your siblings or the television when you're working. Study after they've gone to sleep and when there aren't any good shows.

Many people tell students how they should study, but only you know what works for you. If you never use your notes when you study, spend your class time paying attention rather than just writing things down. If you need to be organized in order to get things done, make sure you spend a few minutes each day dealing with all the papers and notes you received that day. If you know what situations reduce your productivity, you can avoid them.

Have Fun
One of the most important parts of working efficiently is to be well rested and happy while working. If you overwork or stress yourself too much, it will take you longer to get work done. Make sure you set aside time to have fun, hang out with friends, and sit around doing nothing. Balancing work and leisure leads to success.

As your obligations pile up and your calendar becomes full, make sure to write in time for yourself. After all, you are in high school, and you don't want to miss out on the fun things happening around you. Carefully planning your work will make it much easier to enjoy the free time you have.  K&S

Prashanth Murthy is the director and owner of Mathnasium Scottsdale, a math only learning center. Mathnasium has served many high school athletes, as well as high school students dedicated to other activities. Prashanth founded Top Tier College Consulting, a company that helps high school students with career guidance and the college application process. Since then Prashanth took over at Mathnasium, where he has taught math to more than 300 students.