Coming to college from high school is one of the most exciting transitions you are ever going to make in your life. There are so many opportunities to be involved in the community, to pursue your own interests and, of course, there is a lot more freedom for you to enjoy.

With all of these new opportunities and avenues to explore, you might quickly find that there is a significant drain on your most valuable resource — time. Never fear, though, because part of being a successful student and community member at Iowa State is time management.

A common and easy step that you can take is to keep a schedule. It can be very easy to fall into the trap of organizing all of your activities mentally. However, making and keeping a schedule has two benefits.

First, it helps you remember where and when your activities are. Knowing where your events are is just as important as when, especially if you are new to campus. You will be able to prepare for your next activity a few minutes in advance.

Second, all of your engagements are organized in a definite plan you can follow. Sometimes, it may not be obvious until 15 minutes before a meeting starts that you have band practice at the same time. Having a schedule helps you recognize and address any conflicts that may come up, while also having time to work out a solution.

Writing your schedule down in a physical planner can help immensely. Students record things in many different ways — from sticky notes on a backpack to a planner app on your phone — but writing things down is a huge help to organization.

You will also face trying times, whether your friends are playing a game and you want to join or the amount of work before you seems too large to possibly finish in a night. Just remember that both discipline and working efficiently are keys to success.

To work efficiently, always keep your long-term objective in mind. Analyze the work you have to do (your schedule will be a great help at this stage) and identify what has to be done as soon as possible. Don’t let your discipline fail you, though — you still have to carry out the tasks that you push back.

You should also try to eliminate as many of your distractions as possible. If your friends are all in your room, move somewhere else. If someone is trying to talk to you, let them know that you’re studying and turn your phone off. If you create the ideal space for yourself to do your best work, it will soon follow.

Finally, staying disciplined is vital to working efficiently. It can be easy to reward yourself with a break after finishing a task. However, these can prove to be enormous time sinks if you are not careful.