Don’t Count the Days, Make the Days Count

“Don’t count the days, make the days count.”  -Muhammad Ali

Right now I’m struggling to get through the essay writing for my applications.  My deadlines are more than a couple of weeks away, which makes it more difficult for me.  I do feel I do my best work under pressure, so I’ve created artificial deadlines with my essay reviewers, but I’ve definitely let a few of those slip.

I’ve finished drafts for two of the essays of my first full application.  While this is good progress, I definitely won’t finish all my intended applications if I move at this pace.  I’m trying my best to make my days “count,” and I’m usually pretty good when I’m in the library, but I get easily distracted when I try to write at home.  After a long day of work, the last thing I want to do is try to be creative.  Part of it comes from procrastination.  Part of it comes from indecisiveness.  I’m really hoping that the first application is the hardest and subsequent ones get easier.

In terms of stumbling blocks, I’ve realized that you have to spend almost as much time cutting down to your word count limit as you do just writing the actual essay.  This is especially true for the short answer questions.  Additionally, while this should’ve been obvious to me, the value of outlining is tremendous.  I didn’t do much outlining when I originally started my essays, but I’m now using them to force myself to commit to an essay answer.