Preparation is the key to being successful in a . And with each new term is another chance for you to evaluate how well prepared you were and where you could have done better. This kind of honest reflection is key to working smarter, not harder 鈥� and working smarter may be the difference between triumph and struggle when you鈥檝e got a busy schedule outside of graduate school as well.
Each individual鈥檚 version of being prepared can look very different. What works for someone else may not work for you, but you can always borrow another鈥檚 tactics to try them out until you鈥檝e found your optimal strategy. Here鈥檚 what I do to prepare myself at the beginning of each new term of my RN to MSN program:
Let go of last term鈥檚 mistakes. Once you鈥檝e had a moment to think about what worked and what didn鈥檛, it鈥檚 best to make like Elsa and let it go. There鈥檚 no going back to do this differently or handle that better. I find the more I dwell on past mistakes, the more discouraged I start to feel. Instead, focus on the future and what you can do.
Knock out pre-work before your class even starts. Online courses often open two or three days before your actual first day of class. Take advantage of this time to check things out and familiarize yourself with the new course format, materials and syllabus. Knock out any orientation courses or get-to-know-you assignments. Not only are they easy, but doing them early will save you time once the class actually starts.
Schedule your work time, not your deadlines. Looking at your syllabus and make a tentative plan for when you鈥檒l work on each assignment. Focusing on when you鈥檒l do your work instead of when the deadline is gives you a more concrete idea of how you鈥檒l be using your time week to week. This will hopefully prevent over-scheduling, working on an assignment too early or starting a project too late.
Allow school and work to help each other. I鈥檓 guilty of temporary learning. What I mean by that is, I can learn and retain just long enough to get through a difficult course. However, I鈥檝e found that when I allow what I learn in school and experience at work to influence each other, I perform better in both arenas. Embracing my RN-MSN courses as tools I apply to my current practice allows me to better retain content from my coursework. I also complete assignments better and faster when I can draw from personal nursing experiences.
I鈥檝e yet to meet an RN-MSN student who isn鈥檛 a little intimidated by each new term. That鈥檚 completely understandable, given how much we are expected to learn. That鈥檚 why we should take advantage of every new term as a fresh start and take steps to prepare for what we can. As long as you work smart, you鈥檒l find yourself saying at term end, 鈥淲ell, that was easier than I expected!鈥�
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