Even famous writers struggle with deadlines: George R. R. Martin made the news by missing one, while Douglas Adams used to joke about the ‘whooshing sound they make as they fly by’. Unfortunately, missing a deadline is rarely a laughing matter for students, as submitting work late will mean you lose out on valuable marks. As such, deadlines are a frequent source of anxiety when writing an essay. It needn’t be this way though.
Why Deadlines Matter
Hitting deadlines makes sure you don’t lose marks or become overwhelmed by heavy workloads when you fall behind, thereby aiding your academic performance. But this applies outside university too, since the whole world runs on deadlines! Learning to work to a schedule is thus a valuable skill.
4 Tips for Getting Stuff Done On Time
1. Start Early!
Leaving your work until the last minute is rarely a good idea, forcing you to rush and making essay writing a far more stressful experience.
Starting well ahead of the deadline, on the other hand, will allow you to produce a well-written essay on time (without any of the anxiety) by working on it in smaller, manageable chunks. Even if you only write a few paragraphs a day, it can quickly add up! And you should have tie for redrafting, too.
2. Plan Your Essay
A common mistake is launching into your essay without planning. This may mean your work is not well structured, or you could run out of steam if you run into a problem or struggle to express a particular point.
By planning your essay, on the other hand, you’ll have a much better sense of what you want to say and how to structure your arguments. A good way to do this is to note the deadline and schedule accordingly, setting aside enough time for research and re-drafting as well as writing the essay itself.
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3. Prioritise and Organise
Prioritising means recognising the amount of time you need to get your work done. In other words, it’s about knowing the deadline and tailoring your activities accordingly. Have an essay due on Tuesday? This might not be the moment to go away for the weekend.
Meanwhile, being organised simply involves having a grip on what you’re doing. Planning is a big part of this, letting you work out when you will have time to write your essay. But having a regular working routine can also help, allowing you to make the most of the time available.
4. Request an Extension
If you really don’t think you can get an essay done on time, you need to request a deadline extension from your school or tutor.
These are generally only granted in exceptional circumstances, such as serious illness. Thus, you can’t rely on an extension as an alternative to doing the work on time. It should only be a last resort!