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Monday, November 9, 2009
Sunday Ritual
I have a new book: How to Win at College by Cal Newport - his is one of the blogs I follow on this website. He recommends a ritual for Sunday morning. OK - Sunday morning is church, so already I'm revising - my Sunday ritual is Sunday afternoon. After I have my worship and family activities taken care of, I settle down with the Sunday paper. As Newport suggests, this "piques my intellectual energy" so that I am in a creative frame of mind as I think about the coming week. He recommends taking this time to get ahead of your obligations for the week. As Cal puts it, "The satisfaction you'll get from starting the week in full command of your responsibilities will provide the good mood and momentum needed to get through the days that follow. If you take control of your Sunday, you take control of your week." Amen.
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I have a Sunday Ritual similar to this. After Church I go home and lay out my calender and planner and get everything written down. Then I have a dry erase calender hanging in my room, and I transfer important due dates, and meetings onto the board. Then I move to reading a book or the paper. All of this makes me feel like I'm starting the week knowing exactly whats going on. When I have something else to do on Sunday and don't have time to go through this process, I have a much more difficult time getting organized during the week.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this because if you can gain a hold on your week you will enter it far more confidently and with no worries. This will decrease the amount of stress involved because if you have prepared, nothing can go wrong if you plan ahead. This is a very true bit of information.
ReplyDeleteI haven't had much time for church since I started college because of my grades but my normal schedule is waking up sunday morning updating my schedule for school and start do my homework in advance. I normally do a puzzle in the morning so i can wake up and get my brain started up. This helps me controll what is going on in my week and I have less stress.
ReplyDeleteI agree with cal. Only my sunday ritual begings with going to church, heading out for breakfast at panara or denneys, then a short nap. After my nap the library and science blds should be opened so i head there to review my schedule and read and complete upcoming assignments which usually take the rest of the day.
ReplyDeleteI agree with taking control of your week however, I was born in europe where the week actually starts on Monday rather than sunday, and after having lived in the US for almost 10 years... I am still not used to calling the beginning of the week sunday. So my goal is usually to prepare things sunday night then going over what I have to do for the week when I get out of class on mondays.
ReplyDeleteI spend the weekend catching up or getting ahead however I tend to study in the evenings so until then, I like to enjoy the mornings sleeping in if able and afternoons relaxing.
ReplyDeleteI think Sunday afternoons is a great time to catch up if you're behind and get ahead if you aren't. Although sometimes I find it hard to get out of the weekend mindset and into a studying mindset when I don't have class. I'v noticed if I can get out of my house to either the library or just outside its much easier to get things done and get prepared for the week ahead of me.
ReplyDeletei have a study ritual, where i go and get some classical music going on the computer and then lock myself in my room or away from people until i feel that i've memorized all my material.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise. i study with others
I agree with the sunday ritual idea. When you start your week off being productive and feeling accomplished, its hard to fall behind on work througout the week. I don't have a "set" sunday ritual but my sundays are usually similar. I wake up, eat lunch, and figure out what I need to do for the week. After that I start on assignments that are due closer to the beginning of the week and work my way back. After I finish assignments that I need to get done on Sunday I reward myself by hanging out with friends or doing something fun.
ReplyDeleteMy Sundays are kind of hard to plan out now, since lately I've had projects due the next Monday morning, while at the same time scheduled for a 6-hour work shift. I suppose I could get up and read something, but that would definitely involve working on my sleep schedule. That might be hard sometimes, because people will make noise on Saturday nights, even up until the early morning hours, and I am a half-insomniac even without noise. :O Perhaps I could think about Sundays a little more carefully, though.
ReplyDeleteI think starting out the day by going to church or getting your brain woken up by a puzzle, newspaper or something of that sort is a great idea. Then, by getting your week in order before it starts will help to make the week way less stressful.
ReplyDeleteI spend my sundays gathering my thoughts for the upcoming week. Thinking about what needs to be done, how much work, which has more priority, and other things like that. It eases me into a long week before i can relax for another 2 days.
ReplyDeleteUsually I take Sunday's to relax and go to church around 9pm. After church and football I tend to see what the week has in store for me. Then do whatever I have to so that I can be ready for the week.
ReplyDeleteI have actually read this book it has a lot of great tips and really makes you think about how you are actually doing things, I too have a Sunday ritual of going for a run in the morning and then watching football games and relaxing before Monday.
ReplyDeleteI think having a Sunday ritual is a great idea. It can help you get ready for the week ahead. I don't have a Sunday ritual, but this idea might be something I can take and apply to my regular life.
ReplyDeleteMy "ritual" is actually a Saturday night thing, because by Sunday I'm already thinking about homework. When I've had the morning to sleep in and just finished a week and have nothing due the next day, simply church to attend, I find my frame of mind much more relaxed and recharged and optimistic then when I am bogged by thoughts of the minutes I'm wasting toward whatever is next due.
ReplyDeleteMy Saturday includes first straightening the room. That tends to be mindless so I start thinking of what I must accomplish. Next, I catch up on e-mails. Frequently my e-mail will include people wanting to make appointments or plan something fun, so this way I can start to synthesize and sort what I must do, what would be good to do, and what I would like to do but is more of a "fun" category.
I have a whiteboard calendar that I use 3 colors of pen on and it is at this point that I make a visual representation of my week. The red is for things that must happen- mainly classes and assignments, and rent. It sometimes includes doctor appointments or things like getting to the airport on time as well. I first fill in everything that is mandatory in red. Next, I look at things like supplemental lectures, SIs, study groups, and extracurricular meetings that are important, but less detrimental if I miss. These things are recordd in blue. Finally, I look at where there is room and make sure there is at least one slot where I get to do something I want to. That goes in green.
I have sticky notes in corrsponding pink, turquoise, and neon green that I add details to- like where the meeting is, what the length of the paper must be, or what I must bring with me to a place. These help so my calendar remains something to easily look at and not so cluttered that I lose track or become overwhelmed. There is also a certain sense of accomlishment I enjoy when I get to peel that note off the wall and throw it away. The task was accomplished.