By Diane N. Quintana, CPO®
This is a very exciting time for young adults. Many are finishing high school and are heading off to college or university in the fall. Some are graduating from college/university and are preparing to enter the work force. Here is some handy advice to share with the young adults you know to help prepare them as they begin this new chapter in their lives.
Teach them how to create a budget. It is imperative these young adults learn how to budget not only their money, but also their time. Recent research shows that many young adults feel stressed at school because they have not managed their time efficiently. For some young adults, this will be their first experience managing their own time. No one will be after them to get up and go to class or to urge them to be on time for an activity. Think of all the demands that society now puts on these young people. Many of them hold part-time jobs and attend school. Some of them also participate in volunteer activities through school, church, and other organizations. There are also social pressures that these young adults experience – like going out with friends, updating their social networking sites, and surfing the web. With all these other things going on, it’s no wonder some young adults end up cramming to complete papers and projects, earning poor grades, and then becoming anxious or stressed by trying to handle it all. After all – none of us has more than 24 hours in a day. Too bad we can’t bank time the way we can money and save it to use at a later date!
I advise young adults to start creating their time budget by writing down what they are spending their time on and when. To simplify this task, I give them a week’s time log and ask them to fill it in. Once they complete the log, it is easy to get a good picture of what they are spending their time doing. A good question to have them ask themselves is: ‘Is this the best use of my time now?’
I also teach them to make a ‘to-do’ list at night. When you make your list of things you either want or need to accomplish the next day, research shows you sleep much better at the end of the day. Your brain does not have to keep reviewing the list of things because you have taken the job of remembering away from your brain and committed it to either a PDA or paper. Your brain can relax, which means you can really rest. Of course, making the list of things to do does not mean they will get done unless they are scheduled into the day!
If young adult in your life is living on or off campus, chances are they will be sharing space with a roommate. The roommate may have some electronics that look similar. All electronics including the power cords should be labeled to avoid confusion. Space in the room is probably limited, so they will want to make good use of the space under the bed to organize some of their things. Also, don’t forget about vertical space. Shelves and storage cubes are handy items to help organize their belongings.
For more tips take a look at my book: Flying Solo: A Guide to Organizing Your Home When You Leave Your Parents’ Nest.