7.4 One Hundred Days

January first is the deadline set by most colleges and universities to which Athena Mentor students apply. (Be sure to check for the outliers!) How much time do you have left until that date?It's amazing what you can do in one hundred days! The key is to set your goal, and then break it into smaller chunks.Figure out what must be done before what.Highlight tasks that must be done by other people. For example, letters of recommendation must be written by your teachers. Give other people the time they need to complete their pieces of your puzzle! Sure, you can stay up all night to finish a task. (We don't recommend it, but we've all done it.) But you cannot expect other people to drop what they're doing to attend to something you should have asked them to do weeks ago.Set an interim deadline for each chunk.Will this plan work? Some things may go more quickly, if you just do them instead of giving yourself so much time to do them that they drag on and on. This is especially true of short but scary tasks.Sometimes your tasks may require more time than you think. One student recently looked at the time left and said, "I should complete three applications per week." I admire her resolve, but I would kindly advise you that it's going to take longer than that.If your "100 Days Calendar" seems a little off, consider asking someone with more experience whether he or she can see ways to adjust your plans so that everything gets done. A more experienced person may be able to point out potential speed bumps.Here's one: If at all possible, avoid scheduling a December SAT or ACT test during your final exams or school project deadlines.Ready? Let's make a plan for your most exciting 100 days ever!Dr. Marlena CorcoranFounder and CEOAuthor of Year by Year to College, on amazon.com, amazon.de and many national amazon sites