You鈥檝e probably heard the saying, 鈥淭he only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time.鈥�听
Despite the ethical implications of an aphorism that suggests you eat endangered听wildlife,听it is a useful one to remember whenever you feel overwhelmed by your ever-growing task list.听听
Like a six-thousand kilo elephant, your homework is something you听have to听tackle bit by bit. Even if you鈥檝e got eight assignments and three tests to study for, there are ways to reduce your stress so that you can work through each task without crumbling.
1. Start early and use your diary
If your homework is beginning to resemble a giant tsunami surging towards you, you might have failed to properly听take into account听deadlines. Even if everything听is听due at once, chances are you weren鈥檛 set every assignment on the same day or in the same week. You need to find a good way to keep track of deadlines and other important dates to ensure you leave enough time to get it all done.听听
Google Calendar is a great way to start. You could even take an analogue approach and get a giant planner to pin on your wall. Once you鈥檝e chosen your toolset, you need to schedule the process of getting yourself to the deadline. This means counting back from听D-day听so you know when to start a piece of work. This is particularly important for group assignments (which can be a logistical nightmare!) or for longer pieces of work where you鈥檙e required to do research or submit drafts. You also need to听take into account听other deadlines around the same time.听听
2.听Share the load
Do you really need to do everything all on your own or can you share the load with your friends? Now, now, we鈥檙e NOT condoning copying or other acts of dishonesty! But sometimes there听are听valuable ways to consolidate the requirements for a project while still learning everything that you need to learn. For a Humanities assignment that requires research, perhaps you can divide and conquer. You鈥檒l still need to teach each other what you鈥檝e learned, which is incidentally also a great way to consolidate your understanding.听
3. Negotiate
Even if you carefully note all deadlines, you may still find that everything is due on the same day. Eek! The thing is, teachers often don鈥檛 speak to their colleagues about stuff like this, so they don鈥檛 know that every single teacher in the school has chosen the same due date for work. And sometimes 鈥� like the end of term 鈥� it鈥檚 inevitable that everything will come in at the same time.听
But what if the reason you鈥檙e overloaded is personal? Perhaps you have an important sporting event that鈥檚 going to interfere with your prep time. You might just need to ask one or some of your teachers for an extension. Your school might have a policy about this, but either way, it doesn鈥檛 hurt to approach your teacher privately, explain the situation politely, and ask if there鈥檚 anything they can do to take a bit of pressure off you.听听
It probably goes without saying that you鈥檒l be much more successful the earlier you request an extension. Don鈥檛 leave it till the last minute 鈥� that just suggests that you鈥檙e not very听organised. And no need to feel that you听have to听pile on the drama. You may feel dramatic about it, but generally teachers are more responsive to a sensible, logical argument and a reasonable suggestion.
4. Just do it
Sometimes the best thing you can do is just get the work done. Even if you decide to do a less-than-perfect job in order to meet the deadline, you鈥檒l still learn from the feedback you receive. Of course, the lower the stakes, the easier this advice is to follow, so it may be a matter of determining the importance of each task in terms of how heavily the mark will affect your grade or how important the subject is to you.听
We鈥檝e all had to make the decision to just听get something done, rather than give it all the time it deserves, so don鈥檛 feel too bad about it. If, on the other hand, you听have a tendency to听hold back on submitting tasks because you don鈥檛 think they鈥檙e good enough, you may be a perfectionist.听听
We think of perfectionism as a desirable trait, and it does suggest that you care about doing your best, which is admirable. But perfect doesn鈥檛 exist. We鈥檙e all doing our best in the time allotted. And if you never hand anything in, you never get the feedback you need to improve and progress. So, resist your desire to avoid completing your homework. Avoid avoidance. Just do it, submit it, move on.听
5. Keep living
When you鈥檙e stressed, there鈥檚 a natural temptation to limit everything else you do. You certainly do need to spend time focusing. But just sitting at your desk, doing a little bit of that subject and a little bit of this subject but not really doing anything because you鈥檙e so BORED won鈥檛 help. Go for a walk, take a nap, return refreshed.听
6. Gain some clarity
Feeling overwhelmed may have less to do with the quantity of work in front of you and more to do with the fact that you鈥檙e not entirely clear about what鈥檚 required. It sounds obvious, but it鈥檚 remarkable how many students avoid starting a task carefully because they think it鈥檚 bigger and more confusing than it really is.听
So, read the question. Once you鈥檝e read it, do you understand what you听have to听do? If not, the temptation will be to put your head in your hands and a) tell yourself you鈥檙e stupid, b) tell yourself that your teacher is stupid and/or a terrible person, or c) get involved in a long听Whatsapp听thread with your friends to talk about how you鈥檙e stupid AND your teacher is a terrible human.听听
To avoid this scenario, make some notes about what you find confusing and/or hard to follow and arrange to talk to your teacher tomorrow to gain some clarity.听
7. Start, even for a few minutes
While this might seem counterintuitive, it can be听really useful听to start something, even if you don鈥檛 have much time. Maybe you do only have fifteen minutes before you听have to听go to soccer training, or it鈥檚 late and you want to go to bed. But you also have that essay to begin and the blank screen can be so discouraging. Just write something, anything. A couple of sentences are enough. You鈥檒l come back to it tomorrow and change them, so no need to agonise too much.听听
Don鈥檛 underestimate how much momentum just starting can bring to the situation. Tomorrow, when you come back to the task, you鈥檙e not facing a blank screen. Sure, you may need to make some revisions, but you鈥檒l be surprised how decent the words you wrote often are. At least there鈥檚 something to work with.听
8. Get some help
If none of these points really help you to听eat the elephant, then try something else. At Cluey, you can work with your personal tutor on your homework and maybe fill some of those skills and knowledge gaps that are making you feel anxious. Importantly, we can demystify your assignments, give you valuable feedback on how best to tackle each problem, and build your confidence. You don鈥檛 need to feel overloaded or alone with your homework again.
