How to make the most out of your summer

I’ve got around 8 weeks of summer break left and I’m going to try to be productive whilst leaving time for myself. In this article I will let you in on my plan, so you can also use this time intentionally if you have a break.

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Probably the most important aspect of my plan. It’s very easy to fall into the trap of believing you have to do so many things, when in reality that’s not the case. You should use this time period to focus on a few things rather than overload yourself with many tasks/projects. Here’s what I intend to focus on:

• Continue tutoring — I do this for around 12 hours a week and will probably increase it to 14/15 hours in a couple of weeks time. I also need to brush up on some content from the subjects that I teach which will take 6 hours a week.
• Online writing — something that I have been doing for just over 2 weeks. I hope to plan many articles in advance and publish more often. My aim is to have a few drafts ready on any day just in case I cannot write/plan.
• Gym — I’ve started going to the gym (will write an article on this soon so stay tuned). My plan is to go 4 days a week although I haven’t stuck to my promise thus far. Hopefully writing this will motivate me to go more often!
• Video editing — this is a skill that I’m trying to learn and have started recently. I will provide an update on my journey soon.

Something you may have noticed I haven’t specified is family time. I don’t tend to include this because family time is a must and should not need planning. Another thing is prayer time, this is also something I don’t include because it’s a must and is a habit.

Break everything down

For example, I want to write an article. Instead of saying ‘write an article’ I would break it down as:

1. Decide on a topic/title
2. Do some research on the topic (is it beneficial/interesting?)
3. Make a brief plan of what you will write
4. Write the article
5. Proof-read and submit

Timeblock your day

Don’t schedule tasks, set up your day in different ‘modes’. As Cal Newport describes in his book ‘Deep Work’, you should categorise your time into different sections/groups. The tasks in each group should require similar energy to complete. This method has been studied as one of the most effective productivity principles that high performing individuals use.

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I will start to split my day into the following:

• Preparation mode — Morning routine, stretch, walk
• Creative mode — gym, planning articles,, video editing
• Work mode — Tutoring/preparing material to tutor, writing

This is how I plan my summer, the only thing left is the execution. I’ll provide an update on how I’m getting on in the next week or two. Let me know in the comments how you will go about planning your summer as well as any tips you may have.