Writing papers is the biggest part of a student’s life. It all comes to that. You listen to lectures, you read textbooks and additional literature, watch movies, do experiments and research, etc., but in the end, you need to write a paper as a summary for all the above. No matter what you do, it should result in a paper written according to specific rules. It may be annoying at some point, but one gets used to it. At some point, the idea is not just to write a paper, but to do it better than you did the previous time, or better than others do it. In this case, you need to upgrade your writing skills. We have gathered ten useful life hacks that you can apply right away. Just remember — it is not enough to read about how to do something, if you want a result, you actually need to apply these life hacks, at least some of them.
Always have a plan. Writing, like any other academic or professional activity, should start with a plan. We recommend to start planning with a semester and dial back/down from there. How many papers will you need to submit? When? How many days do you anticipate you need for each? You can use a simple Excel document or Google Sheets to make a plan. Your paper itself needs a plan as well, it is called Outline.
1. Stay realistic with your plans. When you make a broader plan and a plan for your paper, stay realistic. Maybe theoretically, you can write an outline in 20 minutes, but in reality, it will take two hours, as you will get stuck with some preliminary research, etc. If you leave tolerance margins in your plan, you will never miss the deadline.
2. Manage the distractions properly. Even if you implement only this life hack from our list, your writing productivity and quality will increase significantly. Make it a habit to block your social media notifications when you are doing research or writing a paper. Use specific apps, or just turn off your phone for some time.
3. Choose your battles carefully. Once you are done with a broader plan we’ve mentioned earlier, it is a good idea to decide which papers are more and less important. Of course, you need to submit all of them, but we recommend to rate papers by their importance and allocate time and efforts accordingly.
4. Ask for help when necessary. While planning, diversification, and rating are truly helpful, you cannot predict everything. That is why you may want to have a Plan B in your pocket. When you get stuck, when it is clear you won’t be able to submit your paper on time, address a reliable writing service, – WriteMyPaperHub, for example. A simple “write my papers” request can save you days of work. Also, you will have an invaluable sample written by a professional writer that you can use later as a guiding star for similar assignments.
5. Learn about essay-hooks. It matters how you begin your paper and how you finish it. Read more about essay hooks and thesis statements, make sure your conclusions are always in tack with your introduction. Your professor obviously has to read your paper, no matter how good or bad it is, but if you start it with a proper hook, he/she may actually remember it. And it is a good thing.
6. Respect the structure. While creativity is all the rage, you should not forget that it is still an academic world, and you should follow the rules. Every type of academic paper has its unique structure, and following it is a must. Not to make mistakes, write an outline based on the standard structure. This way, after doing comprehensive research and writing a paper itself, you won’t deviate from the structure.
7. Use Google Scholar. The better your research is, the more relevant and actual your paper will be. Even if you make some minor mistakes, your professor will definitely appreciate high-quality citations and analysis. Start your search from Google Scholar and also pay attention to online libraries your college has contracts with.
8. Make your own link-source-library. When doing research, you hardly use even every fifth source you find. However, you can use them later. Save the most relevant ones in your own library, add tags for easier search. It may take some time, but later, you will appreciate having all those sources neatly stored within easy reach.
9. Don’t neglect thorough proofreading. We bet you know this one, but, unfortunately, too many students think that they have proofread a paper enough while writing it. It can lead to a catastrophe. Our brain is not created to write and edit at the same time at the same level of quality. That is why you have to allocate enough time for proofreading as a separate part of the plan. Use not only your experience but online proofreaders, such as Grammarly, Ginger, Hemingway, etc.
No one can promise that you will start writing much better soon by applying one or two of these life hacks. However, if you gradually apply at least half of them, you will see the result. It is difficult to make new habits part of life, but once your routine is slightly changed, you are ready to move forward and add more adjustments. This road has no end. If you don’t give up, you will write better papers in less time. And it is what really matters, as it increases your efficiency, leaving time for other things in your to-do list.
Don’t neglect our advice regarding asking for help when you get stuck in writing. Unfortunately, when you have too many assignments to deal with, you stop writing any of them. It feels like no matter what you do, the result won’t be satisfactory, you won’t be able to finish everything on time. You give in. Delegating some of your assignments, you can manage your time more efficiently. Later, when you graduate from college and start your career or continue your education, the delegation will become a part of your daily life. So why not start practicing it right away, receiving better results and learning something new every time?