Problem Solving

To succeed in the college environment you must undoubtedly be a good problem solver. To be an effective problem solver you must take a step back and analyze what is truly causing this dilemma. it could be a number of things. My problems are founded around: procrastination, lack of motivation, and being disorganized. Luckily, two of the three can fixed via learning strategies. Unfortunately, motivation is something you cannot teach, but it is something that you can acquire by just having a strong desire.

For this past week, I used the priority list. I did this for a number of reasons. The chief one being that it encompassed a lot of different learning strategies within it. It also helped me because I am a visual Learner. To properly rank my priority list I used my D's Dues and Dont's . I had to really analyze my schedule and see what was important, and what things I really needed to focus on. My priority list is petty short, but it does show that I have a lot of tests and just an immense amount of work in the coming week. I also encompassed the fritter finder into this because that showed me all of my free time that could be used for studying. Instead of video-games and athletics. Usually I play Basketball or do some sort of physical activity every week. This is where trade offs come into play. Next week I do not nearly have as much work, so doing social and athletic activities will definitely be possible. However, this coming week I have to sacrifice that, because my only job is being a student.

Going back to the L.A.M.E acronym , because I am a visual learner, the action I took was creating a list of priorities. This is really going to help me because as I mentioned before, I am not an organized person so this is one step in the right direction. The material that I have to complete ranges from lab reports to reading about Malcolm X. I have already started preparing for some of my exams and collecting data; the things that I have completed I cross off. This will help me remember the tasks that still need to be completed.

According to the textbook, It's All About Choices the four keys to problem solving are to: identify the problem, then identify the options for solving the problem, followed by taking action toward resolving this problem, and finally evaluating the progress you have made. I have identified my problems as lack of organization, me being an avid procrastinator, and having a tough time getting motivated. The action I took was ranking my priorities and seeing what really lies ahead of me. One option for correcting my problems are to just have a different mindset. If i want to get motivated I need to have a whole different outlook on school. This goes hand in hand with procrastination. If i get my work done earlier, I will definitely have less anxiety. I feel that over time I will get into a routine and getting motivated will no longer be a problem. I think the progress I have made has been great, I have been getting my work done earlier in the day, which leaves time for getting prepared for classes the following day, as well as having some free time.

Problem solving is a great skill to have in all avenues of life. Being able to recognize your problem, in my opinion, is the most important step. Once you have done this, there are so many different ways to approach your problems that correcting it should be fairly easy.