5 Things You Can Do To Prepare For The New Semester

Robert S. Donovan

A couple of weeks ago, Natalie wrote a post about wrapping up the summer. I know, I know. Say it isn’t so!

Well, today I’d like move from summer to fall by point you to a handful of posts I wrote in the early ProfHacker days about getting ready for a new term. Not everyone is going to find all of this advice helpful, obviously, but we hope that there are at least a few things in these posts that can be of use to you:

• “Hit Your Deadlines With Help From Your Calendar": “Two things that machines are good at are handling repetitive tasks that humans find mind-numbingly boring after awhile and laying in wait until a specified time before they take action. These 2 things are what make an online calendar ideally suited for reminding you–via email, instant message, or txt message–that it’s time for you to complete a task related to your professional life.”
• “Make Plans Now To Manage Your Future Stress": “Here’s what you need to do right now: anticipate what’s going to frustrate or overwhelm you and make plans for keeping the stress that results to a minimum. And here are 7 specific suggestions for doing just that.”
• “Conquer The Grocery Store": “I don’t know many people who relish the thought of going to the grocery store to stock the pantry, especially once the semester is in full swing with class prep, piles of grading, committee meetings, writing deadlines, and conference preparations eating away at your available time. Do your future, buried-under-semester-work self a favor by taking a few simple steps right now.”
• “Anticipate The Commute": “Whether you’re driving a 1972 Oldsmobile or a 2009 Prius, now’s the time for you to take care of a few things if you drive to campus. Soon enough the busy-ness of the semester will engulf you, and getting your car serviced will be the last thing on your mind–until something goes wrong. Here are a few suggestions for avoiding transportation problems during the new semester.”
• “Have A Life With Help From Your Calendar": “Unfortunately, it’s all too easy to let work-related responsibilities expand to the point where they obscure the other parts of our lives. Fortunately, the same technique helps you manage tasks like writing, lab work, and grading can also be used to protect the time you need for exercise, for dinner parties, birthday parties, dates, time with your family, and other essential parts of life.”

How about you? What tips do you have for preparing for a new semester? Please share in the comments!

[CC-licensed Flickr photo by Robert S. Donovan]