Time management is one of the most crucial skills students need to have outside of mastering school subjects. With exams, quizzes, and assignments from different classes bombarding you at once, not to mention other extra-curricular activities and maintaining a healthy social life, students can easily be overwhelmed if they don't manage their time properly. Having too much on their plate can even affect productivity and lead to a decline in mental health.

With the right time management skills, you can complete multiple projects and have plenty of time to spare. Here are the top tips to improve time management for students!

Identify and reduce distractions

Everyone has their own kind of distraction. Some people can spend hours browsing online while others can be immersed in video games. Identify which things are the biggest distractions and try your best to reduce how much of your schedule is allotted to certain distractions and when.

Create a schedule

With different upcoming assignments and exams, they can be hard to keep track of without a reliable schedule. Even the most sharp-witted students can miss important details without a handy planner they can rely on. Create a to-do list, arrange the items by urgency, and tackle everything on the list in order. A helpful trick is to use a scheduling tool such as a YouCanBookMe alternative to save you from the stresses of creating and adjusting your schedule manually.

Have a clear goal in mind

When feeling overwhelmed, it's easy to forget your sense of purpose. This can ultimately leave you feeling demotivated over a certain time period. You can avoid this by setting clear goals of what you wish to achieve each and every day. Your goals can be anything from completing a set number of chapters or completing an entire essay.

In addition, it's generally a good idea to break large goals into smaller milestones. Completing each milestone will give you a good idea of how far you've progressed and in how much time. This will help you stay on track to achieve your ultimate goals each week/month/semester.

Make room for adjustments

Once you have created a schedule, what you need to understand next is that it's okay not to stick to it 100 percent. In fact, it's not always possible! Be open and flexible to modifications. You may have everything planned for the next month, but your priorities can shift from one thing to another as time goes on.

Maintain physical activity

This may seem like a waste of time in your already-packed schedule, but exercising is good for both your body and mind. Staying physically active can help you maintain concentration, which will inevitably drop the longer you spend doing assignment after assignment. It gives you a clearer mind and keeps you prepared for the next study session. Taking a cold shower afterward can also further refresh your body and mind!

Give yourself a head-start

You can easily underestimate a task that's due months into the future and end up completely forgetting about it. Avoid this from happening by giving yourself a head-start and working on your assignments as soon as you can fit them into your schedule. Although it can be taxing at first, you're creating more empty slots in your schedule months in advance. Be busy now and enjoy your free time later.

Take regular breaks

Racking your brain during long study sessions is not an effective way of learning. Working on one thing for too long can actually cause your mind to wander. Try studying in short bursts of around 20 to 30 minutes, and take regular breaks in between. It's actually proven to be much more effective by helping you focus better and for longer! For every 30 minutes of school work, schedule a short 10 to 15-minute break to recharge.

Get enough sleep

Lastly, make sure you're getting your eight hours of beauty sleep. This will help you wake up feeling energized and ready to tackle any and all jobs on hand. Break the habit of staying up late as it greatly impacts your productivity throughout the day. Set a time limit when you need to stop studying and reward yourself with much-needed sleep.

School can be challenging and even overwhelming, but with the right time management skills, those large projects aren't just doable, but you'll feel more motivated to complete them in time. The tips mentioned above will help you deal with the challenges of school life while also giving you enough 'you time' at the end of the day.