College life is colorful. 【小题1】 However, college students have a burden of studying. How do they manage to complete a huge number of assignments and still find the time to have fun? Here are some effective time man­agement tips that can be used outside of college.

【小题2】 Let’s say, your friend is sick and misses a very important class. You can help him by telling something you’ve learned there and lending him your notes. Next time you have no time to read a book you need to read and this very friend can retell it to you highlighting the key points.

Use technologies. Many modern students can back up the fact that technologies make studying easier and faster. You don’t always have to waste time to go to a library when you can find everything online. You can save time on calculating things and solving different problems.【小题3】 Using technologies for work is also a must if you want to improve your productivity.

Give yourself a treat. 【小题4】 For example, if you have a task for an hour, promise yourself to have coffee and biscuits if you manage to do that in time. 【小题5】

All in all, college time is a very special period when you learn a lot of things including time management tech­niques. If you take them seriously, you can use them in your future and make your work and life more productive and organized.

We all form habits we perform automatically in response to a cue or a trigger (诱因). 【小题1】 The good ones produce beneficial results without requiring too much brain power. But some can have negative effects in the long term and often need to be broken.

But how do you break a habit? There are three strategies: stop the behavior, stop subjecting yourself to the trigger, or associate the trigger with a new, similarly satisfying behavior. For example, maybe you experience a desire for popcorn as soon as you walk into a movie theater. The movie theater is the trigger, and popcorn buying and eating are the behaviors. To break this habit, you have these options: One, tell yourself “no popcorn” each time you go to the movie theater. 【小题2】 Three, replace popcorn with a new snack that better fits your nutritional goals.

Another example, like nail biting, is subconscious and done frequently throughout the day. 【小题3】 While it’s good to figure out the underlying cause, it might be difficult to catch yourself biting your nails at every moment of stress or boredom. It’s likely better to replace nail biting with another physical stress response. Alternatively, you could use a stress ball to increase your awareness of the nail-biting habit.

The key to the replacement strategy is to make sure that the new habit is appealing. Replacing daily smartphone time with a daily run just won’t work in the long term. 【小题4】

【小题5】 And there’s no evidence that it will take the oft-touted (经常吹捧的) 21 days. A study of 96 people showed that individuals took between 18 and 254 days to form a habit, a useful tip to know if you’re using the replacement strategy to get rid of a habit.

THE COLLEGE APPLICATION PROCESS

It takes hard work to guarantee your college application stands out. Make it rise to the top of the pile by becoming familiar with the application process and getting organized.

HOW MANY SCHOOLS TO APPLY TO

There are a ton of schools out there, but applying to too many colleges is a common mistake. Submitting your application to between five and eight colleges is suggested. Of that list, you should include a variety of dream schools, safety schools and possible schools.

EARLY DECISION AND EARLY ACTION

Early Decision and Early Action are options that allow you to apply to a college early and receive the admissions department’s decision in advance of traditional applicants. However, there are also restrictions that are important to understand. Early Decision, for example, is binding; if you submit Early Decision to a college and they accept, you must attend that college. You will also not be able to apply for more financial aid after this point. Early Action, on the other hand, is not binding; you can submit Early Action to a college, get accepted and have until the following spring to decide whether or not you want to attend.

WRITING A COLLEGE ESSAY

A good college essay is a critical part of the application process. A college essay is really just a way for admissions advisors to get to know you more, hear your perspective and relate to you on a personal level. This is one area you know a lot about, so just remember to infuse as much of “you” as possible into your essay.

NAILING YOUR COLLEGE INTERVIEW

A college interview is an opportunity for you to make a personal impression on an admissions officer and increase your chances of acceptance into a college. It’s a way for you to differentiate yourself from others and show your personality in a way that you can’t on a piece of paper. Practice and preparation will help you do well during your college interview.