How to Build Structure in Your Life and Maximize Productivity

How to Build Structure in Your Life and Maximize Productivity

by | Jul 14, 2025 | ideas for humans

After I graduated, I was glad to have more free time to do what I wanted. But I missed having a schedule and inflexible deadlines for assignments and exams. Deadlines motivated me to work and study. You might have had a similar experience after your own graduation. Do you struggle to organize your time without that class schedule? How can you build structure in your life to maximize productivity?

A major life event can change the amount of free time that you have. For example, when you’re in college, everything in your life is organized into blocks of time: the class syllabus is divided into modules, and each module ends with an exam. What happens when you graduate and you don’t have that structure? How do you be more disciplined and build a routine into your daily schedule?

The trick is to be held accountable for your time. For example, make use of a weekly planner and plan your week ahead and stick to it. Giving yourself deadlines will help you accomplish more tasks. If you don’t stick to a schedule, you will wonder what happened to all that free time that you had. Structure can make you more efficient and achieve your goals more quickly. Below are some ideas on how to build structure into your life after graduation.

Table of Contents:

  1. Put timed alerts on your phone
  2. Sign up for classes, preferably one with homework assignments
  3. Plan your week using an agenda or planner
  4. Join a community or group to hold you accountable
  5. Have three meals a day at regular intervals
  6. Exercise, take a walk, a yoga class or journal in the morning
  7. Get up in the morning and go to sleep at the same time
  8. Do something that advances your career or business
  9. Block off time for leisure activities to reward yourself for your hard work

1. Put timed alerts on your phone

Make good use of the timer on your phone. The timed alerts will remind you to stay on schedule. It’s like the school bell signaling the end of the class and the start of the next.

Some apps have motivational quotes that will pop up on your phone screen to keep you motivated throughout the day. These can act like cues to start and finish tasks, building more structure in your life. It can also give you an idea about whether you are spending too much or too little time on specific tasks.

 

2. Sign up for classes, preferably one with homework assignments

A virtual class or webinar that is given live will give more structure to your day. If the class is done at your own pace, make sure you have the discipline to work on the class at the same time every week.

Pick a class that interests you. There are a ton of free or low-cost options that you can choose from. You can also check if your alumni association has free classes for recent graduates, so take advantage of these offerings.

If you try a class for one session and don’t think it’s for you, move on to the next class on your list but don’t go hopping from one class to another without finishing it or else you won’t get the full value of the class. You can also read reviews first before spending time on the first session. If your class has a forum where students can gather, take advantage of this and be active in your class groups. This can be a good way to meet new people who have the same interests as you.

Taking a weekly class will help build structure into your life and maximize your productivity.

 

3. Plan your week using an agenda or planner

Planners are handy and a lifesaver. I use mine everyday to jot down the items on my to-do list, and reminders and deadlines. Invest in a good planner. It could be one that is visually pleasing with extra pages and all the bells and whistles. Or it can be simple with a minimal design.

If after graduation, your weekly planner is looking empty, think of ways to fill up all those chunks of time to stay productive. If you don’t stick to your schedule, log in that activity in your planner anyway, so you can look back at it at the end of the week to determine if you need to adjust how you spend your time. This also shows that you’ve maximized your productivity.

 

4. Join a community or group to hold you accountable

One of the nice things about college is the camaraderie and study groups. Maybe you met every evening at the library or café to study and quizzed each other to prepare for an exam. Your classmates kept you focused and made studying fun.

Joining a community is the same thing. Just showing up to a community or group is half the battle. Keep in touch with your classmates and meet up even if it’s not to study. It can be lonely without seeing your former classmates everyday, so make sure that you check in with your friends as often as you can and let them know you want to continue the friendship. The good friendships that you worked on building in school are valuable. Even though you are not studying for exams anymore, meet to exchange how your career planning is going. You can feel isolated after graduating if your social life evolved around your college friends and you don’t have that buffer anymore.

Showing up to a class at the same time every week builds structure in your life and makes you more productive.

 

5. Have three meals a day at set times, at your dining table

Don’t skip breakfast! Food fuels your energy for the day. If this was something you neglected during your chaotic busy schedule at school, and you skipped meals, now is the time to correct that. It is difficult to perform your best on an empty stomach. A healthy body translates into a healthy mind that operates more efficiently and is better equipped to weather and recover from stress.

Getting the proper nutrition is key to bringing your “A game.” You’ll perform better if the right nutrients are being carried in your blood circulation to your body, and it also improves your sleep and memory. Having regular meals builds the needed structure in your life.

 

6. Exercise, take a walk, yoga class or journal in the morning

The exercise will improve your blood circulation and give you more energy. The morning is the best time to get exercise because once you get your blood flowing, your heart pumping, you will find it easier to focus the rest of the day. You need energy to achieve all of the goals that you’ve dreamed of. I cannot stress enough the benefits of exercise. You’ve probably heard fitness experts touting all the health benefits of exercise, and they are not exaggerating. Exercise boosts longevity so you can live longer and have more time to accomplish all those goals you set for yourself.

Getting into a regular exercise routine will help build structure in your life and give you the motivation to be more productive.

 

7. Get up in the morning and go to sleep at the same time

This is good for sleep hygiene. Your circadian rhythm is your “inner clock” that tells you when to wake up and when it is time to sleep. After you graduate and have more leisure time, you may be tempted to sleep during the day to catch up on the sleep you lost pulling all-nighters. Work on resetting your circadian clock so that you wake up and go to sleep at the same time each day. A bit of caffeine in the morning to boost your energy. Whether it’s brewing a cup of your favorite tea or coffee, it can help you feel more alert during the day.

Why is it important to wake up and sleep at the same time? You train your body to wake up with the sunrise and to sleep when it’s dark and this allows you to get the right amount of sleep each day. Poor sleep hygiene has been linked to a whole gamut of diseases. Sleep gives you the strength to fight off diseases such as cardiovascular disease. Just like getting three meals a day, good sleep hygiene lets you perform at your optimal level. It improves your mood, memory and makes it easier to be motivated. If you have bad sleep habits, work on resetting your circadian rhythm. Get as much sunshine as you can during the day, and avoid looking at the bright light from your computer or phone at night.

Having a regular sleep cycle improves energy, and hence, productivity, and builds more structure in your everyday life.

 

8. Do something that advances your career each day

Whether it’s reading a book about entrepreneurship at the library or on your tablet, networking, or attending a virtual class, it only takes a few minutes each day. You can accomplish a lot even if you put in only fifteen minutes each day because all your efforts will add up by the end of the week. Block off this time in your weekly planner, and keep track of your efforts in a journal, your goal, what you did, and what you accomplished for that day. Don’t forget to set a goal for the next week. It can be to network with another acquaintance or finish reading another chapter in the book on entrepreneurship.

 

9. Block off time for leisure activities to reward yourself for your hard work

You’ve made it through a week, and checked off all the items in the to-do list in your weekly planner. Good job! Now is the time to reward yourself with a treat, whether it’s visiting a friend and going for dinner or reading that sci-fi novel that’s been on your reading list. Taking some leisure time will reset your energy store and refresh your mind for the upcoming week. You deserve it!

 

The Final Word

After graduation, take some time to enjoy your free time. Once you are refreshed and energized with the extra leisure time, now’s the time to focus and plan ahead to achieve your career goals. Sit down at your desk with your weekly planner and jot down your to-do list and block off chunks of time so you can keep on track with your goals. Don’t forget to block off time for self-care and physical exercise. If you’re feeling lost after graduation, and don’t know how to organize your time without an everyday schedule, implementing structure in your life can go a long way in making you feel more in control of your time and bring you closer to your career goals.

How To Reach For The Stars While Being Realistic

How To Reach For The Stars While Being Realistic

by | Jul 6, 2025 | ideas for humans

Now this might seem like an oxymoron. Is it realistic to reach for the stars? When you want to achieve your goals, how do you reach for the stars while maintaining realistic expectations?

 

1. Assessing whether you have unrealistic expectations

Unrealistic expectations stem from common misconceptions. For example, when talking about entrepreneurs and success in business, we often think that they’ve achieved overnight success. The successes, rather than the failures, are what draws attention and gets the most reactions on social media. People will rarely publicize the struggles that they’ve encountered during their entrepreneurship journey.

If all you consume is social media, this causes you to have unrealistic expectations of your own goals. Sure, setting the bar high helps you dream big and fuels your ambition. But when you have goals or ideals that you can’t reach, you easily become discouraged.

So if you think that entrepreneurs achieve success with very minimal effort, you will probably be shocked when you find that success requires toil and perseverance. Lots of it. Entrepreneurs have sleepless nights, worrying whether they have enough funds to pay the bills.

Sometimes you can get carried away by reaching for the stars, which causes you to have unrealistic expectations. That’s why a reality check is good to have every so often, and ask yourself if what you expect to achieve is realistic.

 

2. How to reach your goal without getting discouraged

When you reach for the stars, you expect things from yourself, and when you don’t meet your own expectations, you feel dissatisfied. But you need to walk before you can run. You can’t give up too easily, or be too hard on yourself.

Discouragement is the enemy of progress, or the perception of progress. You can have a lofty goal that seems miles away, but in reality, you have actually made it one step closer with your blood, sweat, and tears – you just can’t see the results yet. The incremental steps towards your goals appear invisible, until all of a sudden, that momentum picks up and you’re off to the stars.

This happens frequently if your personality type tends towards perfectionism.

It’s noble to strive for that perfect ideal, but it can easily discourage you if your results are less than perfect.

Think of major goals as subgoals, or smaller steps. Attaining that one small step will fuel your motivation to take another step. So if you find it hard to get started on achieving your goals, take the first step, then the next.

 

3. Stay realistic by evaluating your expectations

Are your expectations grounded in reality?

When you reach for the stars, it’s easy to forget about what’s realistic, and what’s not. To find out, first map out a timeline for your goals, and give yourself room for setbacks. No matter how closely you follow your plans, you will most likely experience setbacks on your journey. Then review this timeline. Is it realistic? Are you expecting to do too much in too little time? Some people will plan out an entire year thinking that they will do everything on their to-do list. But when they miss one of them, everything seems to fall apart, and their progress is stalled.

As mentioned previously, success rarely materializes overnight, and that includes having plans that run smoothly without encountering any barriers.

What can you do about unrealistic goals?

Rewrite the timeline you’ve set for achieving each goal, and give the timeline some flexibility. By having flexibility in your plan, you’re more likely to reach your goal. Decrease the number of goals that you plan on achieving for the year. Sometimes, you’re so ambitious that you plan on achieving too many goals. Be realistic, and pick the ones that have the most return on the time that you invest into the goal. By prioritizing your goals, you are much more focused and less distracted by the least important goals.

 

4. Be rewarded for that first step

Most people will have goals, but not the motivation to reach them. That’s why you must set up a reward system for your hard work. Rewards are what motivates you to do more of something and to keep on going. To incentivize yourself to reach your goals, be sure to reward yourself for that first step.

That first step is the most challenging, with the most barriers. There’s a lot of negative self-talk that may hinder you from even starting to achieve your goals. This is why it’s important to reward yourself for trying.

During our journey in reaching for the stars, it pays to stay realistic, and to reward yourself for sticking to an achievable goal. Instead of thinking of your goal in terms of the end result, think of it in terms of the path that got you to the first step. In changing how you think about reaching for the stars, you are more realistic, and more likely to arrive at the destination that you’ve been aiming for.

Are You Too Nice?

Are You Too Nice?

by | Jun 28, 2025 | ideas for humans

1. Introduction

There are many heart-warming synonyms for “nice”, such as generous, benevolent, and compassionate. But when I reflect back on why I feel the need to be too nice, these words take a sudden turn, like I’ve rationalized my “niceness” even though the person I’m being nice to doesn’t deserve it.

Are you too nice to someone even though you shouldn’t be? If you’re like me, you rationalize your actions by saying, “But I want to be nice! Am I just naive for wanting to be a nice person?”

“What if I like the feeling of making someone feel valued, like their opinion matters?”

“What if someone is just having a hard day and needs a bit of understanding and compassion?”

But can you go too far to be nice?

 

2. Are you the peacemaker in your circle of friends or family?

If a person’s feathers are ruffled by an offending remark or action, you feel the need to smooth things over to keep the peace. If everyone just behaves themselves, we can avoid conflict and live peaceably.

You’re the type of person who hates it when someone is upset. To make this person feel better, you start acting very nice to them. You bite back any words that might make them more upset, tip-toeing around them and being accommodating, catering to their needs and wishes.

Often, you’ll describe yourself as the peacemaker in your circle of friends or family. You’re the one who will make things right when things feel unbalanced, resolving conflicts so that everyone feels happy again.

But these actions come at a cost.

 

3. Do you have trouble being assertive?

Most of the time, you’re nice because you’re not assertive and it’s easy to take advantage of a nice person. This is the cost of being nice. You’re easily labelled as a pushover, giving everyone the impression that it’s okay to take advantage of you.

You’re faced with a dilemma. How do you be assertive without offending this person? Sometimes you can’t think of a way to do this, so you back down and let them have it their way.

But you’re going to be stepped on if you keep this up!

 

4. Are you too nice because of guilt?

Feeling responsible for how people feel is sometimes the result of guilt. You know, the feelings of being ashamed, guilt-ridden, and conscience-stricken. You’d do anything to avoid feeling this way because it’s uncomfortable, like having a heavy weight on your conscience.

Guilt can make you go out of your way to be nice to someone, putting their needs above yours. But you shouldn’t have to. To get rid of feelings of guilt, be more compassionate to yourself. You like to be understanding, so turn around those actions to yourself. You’re nice to others, and that should include yourself, too. What would happen if you were nicer to yourself?

 

5. How can you stop being too nice?

We’ve all heard that we should treat someone the way you want to be treated. But what happens when you’re the only person to stick to this rule while other people disregard your own feelings? After a while, you’ll start to feel resentful and bitter. So put your foot down and say you’ve had enough. There’s no amount of compassion that will fix your relationship with this person. Let yourself be selfish for once!

Good for you for recognizing that you are too nice. First of all, to stop being too nice, practice saying no. Some people don’t know how to. It’s tough to say no when others guilt-trip you. But shut-off those voices until they’re background noise. You are not obligated to go out of your way to be nice. It’s like trying to be helpful even though this person won’t be helpful in return. You end up being short-changed in every interaction you have with this person.

 

6. Conclusion

Being too nice is a disservice to yourself. If you’re too nice, turn it around and instead of being too nice to others, be nice to yourself. Once you stand up for yourself and let others know that you won’t be pushed around, their opinions about you will change. They’ll know that you won’t be taken advantage of. Practicing self-compassion is also another step you can take to feel less guilty, because guilt is a large part of your motivation to be too nice to others.

How to Find Out If You’re a Creative Genius

How to Find Out If You’re a Creative Genius

by | May 4, 2025 | ideas for humans

1. How do you find out if you’re a creative genius?

If you have an inkling that you might be a creative genius, and you want to find out for sure, try by creating something, anything! You don’t have to take an IQ test to find out if you’re a creative genius. Start by exercising that creative muscle. Everyone possesses creativity, even if it’s just an iota of it, no matter what they think. It’s in our genes!

Without creativity, humans would have never been able to survive. In the path to human evolution, the early primates used tools such as sticks for their utensils. What else shows why creativity is in our genetic makeup, if not that?

To find out if you’re a creative genius, simply start by doing and creating. Start sharing. Do others like your creations, too?

So how do you find out if you’re a creative genius?

The first step is to do it. Take action. Create something. We all have a bit of creativity in us.

What are your interests? Do you like arts and crafts, which you can sell on Etsy? Or do you like to write songs or works of fiction? Find out what your interests are and start creating!

 

2. Can creativity be taught?

Are people inherently or genetically creative? Maybe. But what if you don’t think you were blessed with those creative genes? Can you learn how to be creative, like any skill? Yes, creativity can definitely be taught! Just because you don’t think you’re creative doesn’t mean that you can’t look for ways to learn creativity.

There are different types of creativity, for example, in business and the arts. You just have to find one outlet for your creativity that really resonates with you.

There are courses and books on creativity that you can read to jumpstart your creative journey. Because that’s what it is, a journey. And like any journey, the more frequently you travel on that road, the more familiar you will become with how to be creative. Flex those creative muscles often until it becomes second nature to you.

 

3. Why is creativity useful?

Developing your creativity is useful because it can help you in problem solving. Creativity is not only needed for the arts. It’s required for a lot of non-artistic careers, such as entrepreneurship and business. These careers require a ton of creative problem solving.

You’ve heard of the saying, if there is a will, there is a way. To overcome obstacles, you have to find creative solutions to problems. There’s no better way to develop creativity than to get yourself into a situation where you must be resourceful. Creativity is like a tool. You become adept at using it only if you practice often enough.

 

4. Do you need a certain environment to be creative?

What makes for an environment that is conducive and encouraging to creativity? An environment that is open and accepting is essential for you to get creative.

Work with others who are pursuing the same artistic endeavours like you. For example, there are meetup groups for writers who gather to work on their writing. There are plenty of other groups like these, like knitting clubs, oil painting groups, or songwriting groups. Being among other creators puts yourself in an environment to bounce ideas off people, get feedback, and be inspired.

 

5. What to do if you think you’re a creative genius

If you think you’re a creative genius, congratulations! You believe in yourself enough to take that crucial first step to creating a work of art.

Next, you should find ways to develop and nurture that talent. Stretch that creative muscle everyday to strengthen your talent.

Find other communities and groups that will appreciate your creative output. They can encourage you to keep pursuing your artistic endeavours.

 

6. What to do if you don’t think you’re creative

On the flipside, what should you do if you don’t think you have a creative bone in your body? What if you don’t have the urge to be creative? How do you channel or tap into that hidden creativity?

If you find that it takes a lot of effort to be creative and that you’re toiling away at your creations, take a step away from it for a while. Take a break. Maybe you just need a change of scenery to reset and draw out your creativity from its hiding place.

Take a walk in nature, because a change of scenery might be all you need to jog your brain for new ideas and thoughts. Being open to new and fresh experiences is also a way to jump start new projects.

Finally, have more conversations with people, especially people you don’t know. Talking to strangers is like deepening your social circle, which can present you with more opportunities and ideas.

 

The first step to finding out for sure whether you are a creative genius is to start creating something. Tap into that creative well that everyone has. The more you draw from it, the easier it becomes to be creative. If you don’t think you have a creative bone in your body, surround yourself with some creative people, whether it be an art class or writers’ group. Challenge yourself to find new ideas, and break out of your routine. It might just be the thing to hit the reset button on your creative outlet.

Self and Society: How to Find a Place Where You Belong

Self and Society: How to Find a Place Where You Belong

by | Apr 27, 2025 | ideas for humans

People struggle with alienation and feelings of loneliness, much more so since the start of the pandemic. Suddenly, with self-isolation, societal boundaries were redrawn and you might have found yourself lost in the shuffle. How can you find a place where you belong?

Feelings of being displaced from your niche in society are common. When your self in relation to society is not aligned to its optimal state, it can increase the feeling of being unsettled. You become lost when trying to find a place where you belong.

Do you find yourself searching for meaning?

Maybe you’ve found yourself in an existential crisis. You come up with nothing when you evaluate your contribution to society. When your self-worth is dependent on whether you are acceptable to society, you may find yourself trying to conform when really you want to just be who you are.

 

1. Are you valuable to society?

When the things that we do feel so meaningless, it’s easy to feel like you don’t contribute anything to society. When you question what value you bring to society, a diminishing self-esteem follows. If they would rate their life satisfaction, the ratings would be dismal. But you need to stop that negative self-talk. Everyone can be valuable to society. It can feel small when you start, but you are underestimating the impact you make. There are several steps you can take to feel more like a valuable contributor to society.

 

2. Find a career that enriches your life.

Dissatisfaction comes from feeling disengaged and apathetic. To have a meaningful life, find something that interests you and gives you fulfillment. This applies not only to the work environment, but the people that you spend the most time with.

We are social creatures. Even if we don’t like it, our happiness depends on other people. Our career and workplace are where we spend most of our time outside of our homes. So it’s essential that you choose the right one.

The friends and family in your social circle should be supportive and encouraging of your hopes and aspirations. Carving out a space to be yourself also means choosing the right people to surround yourself with.

This leads to the next step.

 

3. To find a place where you belong, search for the right community, friends, or work environment.

Society can feel like a machine that you’re not an essential part of, like you’re not essential to making it run. The reason why people feel disconnected from society is because they don’t play an active role in it.

Try community-giving or volunteering your time to a worthy cause. A simple act of charity means that you’ve played a role in a stranger’s life, no matter how small.

Do something that involves teamwork and share that work with other people, to strangers, to people you meet on the street.

 

4. Communities thrive because the people who live in it are productive and creative.

Exercise your creativity because it’s a valuable skill. Creativity is like the universal key to relatability. It is easy to find a thread of commonality with others if you are sharing your creativity. Everyone has thoughts, hopes, and ambitions, which you can pour into your creation. Build something out of nothing and then share it.

 

5. What value do you bring to society?

It’s a tough question because sometimes you feel like you’re just a cog in the wheel. When trying to make room for yourself in society, and to find a place where you belong, it can feel like knocking on everyone’s door and getting turned away.

The secret is to know which door to knock on. Not everyone is willing to listen to you or be your friend, so the best thing to do is to be selective and choose carefully.

 

The self and society are sometimes at war with each other, struggling to align but not achieving any ground of commonality. Sometimes it’s hard to know where you stand in society. The search for meaning can be lonely. Start by finding work that fulfils you, then fill your life with people who support you. Fan that creative spark and share it with these people, because that’s where you can find commonality, and belonging.