For nursing students, going to school from the comforts of home is a beautiful thing. However, it can also lead to overwhelming feelings of stress and lack of control if not properly planned. Dissecting a sheep heart on your kitchen table at 3 am with the family pet looking on is nobody’s idea of a good time! Don’t even ask how I know this. With a little discipline and forethought, the convenience and flexibility of online education can work beautifully to your advantage.
Here are some ideas that I picked up along the way.
1. Dedicate a space for yourself, no matter how small, somewhere in the house. Even taking the door off a little used closet can create a cozy nook where you can keep class materials organized. Designated work space leads to work; setting up on a corner of the kitchen table or living room couch leads to sitting around with a cup of tea with your feet up, texting your friends about how you don’t feel like working.
2. Dedicate time for yourself, no matter how small the increments. Are you a morning person or do you prefer to burrow into your work when the whole household is asleep? Consistency is the key. Make this YOUR time every day and make sure every member of your household knows this and respects it.
3. Plug yourself into the nursing class community: ask questions, make friends, discuss and clarify information. Online professors are very accessible—they maintain office hours and are very open to answering email questions. Every class has a community—you are not alone. If this is your first online educational experience, buddy up with someone who knows the ropes. This could be the start of a beautiful friendship.
4. Break class content up into small easily achievable goals. Take a good overview of how much work is expected of you for each class. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Remember #2—if you have dedicated daily work time, stick to it. You’ll be amazed how much you can accomplish in one hour—and you won’t be resentful.
5. Set up a time line. Make sure to include R&R time and stick to it. No one has control over the unexpected challenges of daily life. Write some extra time into your schedule to account for it. Be prepared to revise, revise, revise.
6. Make lists. If you’re a magnificently organized engineering type of nursing student, you already appreciate the beauty of a list. If not, it will be a revelation. There’s something wonderfully gratifying about crossing tasks off a list. No matter how insignificant they may seem, they all add up in the end.
7. Prioritize the tasks, starting with the most challenging tasks from your syllabus. If writing a research paper is as appealing as a visit to the orthodontist, start your research on week one, even if the paper isn’t due until week ten. Set aside half an hour each day towards it—at the end of the week that’s two and a half relatively painless hours of research already done.
8. Invest in organizational tools. A visit to the local Staples may be in order. Treat yourself. Making your space beautiful and functional goes a long way toward making you want to spend time there.
9. Take breaks—real breaks—meditate, do yoga, BREATHE.
10. Reward yourself. You have made the commitment to improving your life through education. Give yourself a gift to strive for at the end of every semester—a spa day away from all your responsibilities goes a long way towards renewing body, mind and spirit and gives you the strength and energy to keep on going. In the words of a fellow nursing student who’s currently working on her MSN while holding down a full time job and raising three young children, “Remember, it’s not forever!”