Out Of Time

Something I get asked a lot is, Clare, how do you even have the time to write!?? To which I answer, Well, I mean, I write about a million words a day for my major….

In all seriousness though, finding free time for hobbies (writing for me instead of for my professors) can be a tricky problem to solve. Last week in my poetry class, we were discussing the same topic: how do college students, with their bountiful amounts of homework, club commitments, social activities, time to eat food (the most important of all), etc., etc. have time to do anything else? I offered this—maybe a bit skeptical, but helpful to me—advice; to make time.

What I mean by this is that the little moments in your day can often be the most vital. If I’m reading a book, and I pull it out if I get to class a couple minutes early, or if I’m waiting for forty-five-years at West End for my mozzarella sticks, or read if I’m eating by myself for lunch that day, or read for ten minutes before going to bed, or giving myself little homework breaks to read, or listen to an audiobook as I walk to class…the list of opportunities goes on and on. I’ve used reading as an example, but writing is the same way. If I take my computer out and write even a little bit on something I’m working on before class starts or when I’m waiting to meet someone, that inspires me to find a bit of time later on the day to continue working on it.

My last piece of advice is to not only fit it in the small moments, but make a larger moment too. Your responsibilities are seemingly overwhelming, I know. You might just want to lay on the floor and cry over the fact that your class is across the Drillfield, and it’s pouring, and the last time you went to that class you failed your test (I’ve been there), but that helps no one. Though, I will say that a good cry is actually pretty nice sometimes. Anyway, if you set aside a specific part of your day—maybe thirty minutes in the morning or before bed to de-stress, not only will you get something done, but you’ll go into or finish your day feeling even more productive.

Photo source: http://www.theclockdepot.com/Grandfather_Clocks.html