As a student myself, I know that one of the biggest struggles of many students is being consistently productive. Some days, you may get a lot of work done. But perhaps more often than you wish, there are days when you don’t accomplish as much as you would like.

If you’re struggling to follow a productive schedule daily, the good news is that there are strategies you can implement to maximize your productivity every day.

How This Article is Structured

In this article, I provide the full productive day schedule I followed in high school to be consistently efficient for 12+ hours a day. Although this schedule is specific to me, I highlight 18 productive daily routines for students that I used that you can also use to maximize your productivity.

By the end of the article, you will know how to create and stick to a schedule to be productive for 12 hours a day (without going insane)!

P.S. look out for the Productive Hours Counter I place at regular points in the article to hold me accountable for my 12 hours of productivity!

Let’s get started!

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Wake Up “” 6:50 am

Productive Daily Routine #1: Wake up at the same time everyday

In high school, I set my alarm for the same time every morning to give myself enough time to get ready. If I woke up feeling rushed, I would already be starting my day off on the wrong foot. And to make the most of your day, you should set the right mood from the very beginning.

Productive Daily Routine #2: Use a sunrise simulator

Every morning, I used a sunrise simulator alarm clock, which has several benefits. According to experts, a sunrise simulator improves your circadian rhythm by helping you naturally wake up when it’s brighter. Also, it reduces the impact of sleep inertia, which is the state of feeling groggy after waking up.

In general, having a sunrise simulator enhances your cognition and mental clarity from the moment you wake up.

Wait, but what if the artificial light can’t wake me up?

If you’re worried that artificial light alone won’t wake you up, you don’t need to be. On my alarm clock, I was able to set the alarm to sound when the light was brightest. I chose the sound of seagulls at the beach, which wasn’t grating and more natural. (I’ve been using my sunrise simulator alarm clock for the past 4 years””for the exact one, click here.)

Get Ready “” 6:50 am – 7:00 am

Productive Daily Routine #3: Follow the same get-ready routine every morning

I did the same tasks in the same order every morning. First, I would get dressed. I recommend choosing your outfit the night before so you don’t have to stress over it in the morning.

Next, I would brush my teeth, wash my face, and do my hair. Some days, if I had a little extra time, I would put on light makeup.

Breakfast “” 7 am – 7:20 am

Productive Daily Routine #4: Eat a nutritious breakfast

Eating a nutritious breakfast should be part of any student’s daily schedule. According to experts, the blood sugar needed to fuel your brain and other muscles is low when you wake up. Therefore, you need to eat a healthy breakfast to give you energy to have a productive morning.

Here were some of my favorite quick and easy breakfasts in high school:

• Oatmeal with fruit and a hard-boiled egg
• Avocado toast with a sunny side-up egg
• Toasted bagel with cream cheese (not the healthiest, but does the job on a day you’re running behind)

Drive to School “” 7:20 am – 7:35 am

Productive Daily Routine #5: Get to school slightly early

After breakfast, I would grab my things and go. My high school was about a 15-minute drive away. Although classes started at 7:45 am, I liked getting there 10 minutes prior to the bell.

As I mentioned before, feeling rushed in the morning sets the wrong mood for the rest of the day.

Morning Classes “” 7:45 am – 12:45 pm

Productive Daily Routine #6: Write down any assignments/tests for a class right after it ends

After each class, I would pull out my planner and jot down any assignment deadlines and test dates mentioned. This way, I wouldn’t forget anything I needed to do.

Productive Daily Routine #7: Be productive whenever you’re in class

If we finished a lecture early or if we were just having a chill day in class, I would immediately begin working on homework. As long as I was sitting in the classroom, I held myself accountable for being productive.

This saved me countless hours I would have needed to spend on assignments at home. Often, I’d be able to complete problem sets of 30+ questions just using the windows I found in class.

As long as you’re sitting in the classroom, you should be working on something productive. Making the most of your class time can save you so much time later in the day.

Lunch “” 12:45 pm – 1:40 pm

Productive Daily Routine #8: Allow yourself to take breaks

After my five morning classes, I would take a complete break from working during my lunch hour. I would take this time to eat lunch (obviously), talk to friends, and just chill.

An essential part of any student daily schedule should be making time for breaks. Our brains need time to recharge before we can concentrate again.

Afternoon Classes “” 1:40 pm – 3:30 pm

In the afternoon, I only had two periods, with a 10-minute break in between. As with my morning classes, I would hold myself accountable for working on something productive as long as I was in the classroom.

Return Home “” 3:30 pm – 3:45 pm

If I didn’t have any after-school events, I would leave school immediately after my final period. It took me about 15 minutes to drive home.

Break “” 3:45 pm – 4:15 pm

Productive Daily Routine #9: Have a short after-school break

After getting home, I would generally take a half-hour break. I would use this time to change out of my school outfit, eat a snack, and listen to some music. Taking a break would help me refresh after a long day of classes.

However, while taking a break after school is important, I would like to emphasize that it should be a short break. You should restrict your break to 20-30 minutes so that you don’t lose momentum.

Think about it this way…

If you were to come home and immediately take an hour-long break despite having lots of work, it would probably not be an entirely enjoyable break. In the back of your mind, you would have a constantly nagging voice telling you to get to work. As such, it would be a stressful and guilt-inducing break.

Instead, you should get to work as soon as possible to set a productive mood for the rest of the afternoon.

Extracurricular “” 4:15 pm – 7:00 pm

In high school, I had an extracurricular that took up my entire afternoon every day. However, if you don’t have an activity, you should get started on studying as soon as possible. In the studying segment of my schedule, I will talk more about useful tips to maximize your productivity while studying.

Dinner/Break “” 7:10 pm – 8:00 pm

Productive Daily Routine #10: Find time for physical activity

After dinner, I would take my dog on a half-hour walk. One thing that should be part of any productive schedule for students is finding time to be active.

According to the Mayo Clinic, you should try to incorporate at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity into your daily schedule. Try replacing time spent on social media or watching Netflix with some physical activity””it doesn’t have to be rigorous, just enough to get your heart rate up.

Study Session #1 “” 8:00 pm – 9:30 pm

Finally, at around 8:00pm, I would begin working on schoolwork.

Productive Daily Routine #11: Make a to-do list

First, I would pull out the list of assignments and tests I had jotted down earlier in the day. Then, I would figure out what I needed to get done and create a to-do list.

Productive Daily Routine #12: Practice effective time management

If I had a large project to work on, I would break it up into smaller chunks and assign deadlines for each chunk. If I had a test to study for, I would break up the content to be studied over several days.

By doing this, I was able to avoid procrastination and do higher-quality work.

Also, remember to maximize your study sessions by using effective study techniques. Using poor study techniques wastes a lot of time by making it harder for you to retain and understand information.

If you have a class that you just can’t motivate yourself to study in, check out How to Pass a Class You Hate (How I Went from a B- to an A+) for study motivation tips.

Productive Daily Routine #13: Alternate between easy and hard tasks

After a brief planning period, I would get started on my to-do list for the day. I would alternate between more difficult tasks on my list and easier tasks.

For example, difficult tasks could be studying for a major exam or working on a research paper. Easier tasks could be copying vocabulary terms or completing a simple problem set.

Why should I do this?

First of all, alternating between difficult and easier tasks conserves your energy. After working on a difficult task, you can give your brain time to recharge by working on something that requires less thinking.

Second of all, you can probably get through easier tasks faster. Being able to check of those tasks quickly on your to-do list will give you a sense of accomplishment that keeps you going.

On the other hand, if you were to work on the hardest, longest assignments first, you could get easily discouraged from not accomplishing much in a given amount of time.

Productive Daily Routine #14: Use the Pomodoro Method

If you’re super big on productivity, you’ve probably already seen this method all over the Internet. The basic idea is that you should work in 25-minute intervals with 5-minute breaks in between.

The Pomodoro session tracker from my student Notion setup.

This way, you feel a sense of urgency to complete your work since you’re working in intervals. Additionally, you give yourself time to recharge.

Shower and Change “” 9:30 pm – 9:45 pm

Productive Daily Routine #15: Take a shower

In my opinion, this is an underrated productive routine that is not often mentioned. After a long day, taking a shower would help me feel refreshed and ready to continue studying.

Also, I found that if I was stuck on an assignment, taking a longer break away would help me come up with new ideas. In fact, research shows that showering provides the perfect mental environment for creative ideas. So if you’re stuck on something, taking a quick shower could help!

Study Session #2 “” 9:45 pm – 11:30 pm

I would study for another hour and 45 minutes before going to bed, continuing to take short breaks in between.

Get Ready for Bed “” 11:30 pm – 12 am

Productive Daily Routine #16: Pack everything you need the night before

After shutting down my laptop, I would pack everything I needed for school the next day. This way, when I left in the morning, I could just grab my backpack and go without worrying about forgetting anything.

You may also like “9 Best Night Routines for Students to Skyrocket Productivity”

Productive Daily Routine #17: Take time to wind down

Next, I would brush my teeth and take out my contacts. Before going to bed, I would read a few pages of a book and play some calming classical music in the background.

By taking a half hour before bed to wind down, I could detach myself from thinking about work. In this way, I was able to get a better night’s sleep.

Although we like to think of each morning as a fresh beginning, our bodies don’t really work that way. How you feel when you go to bed is how you feel when you wake up in the morning. Consequently, it’s important to take time to distance from the hassle of study and work before bed.

Productive Daily Routine #18: Go to bed at the same time every night

I would try to go to bed before 12 am every night. This way, I would get around 7 hours of sleep a night. On days that I didn’t follow this routine and only got 5-6 hours of sleep, I would feel a significant drop in my cognitive abilities.

Conclusion

Thanks for sticking with me throughout my entire productive day schedule! Here is my final productive hours count:

As you can see, maximizing productivity in your daily schedule is about incorporating routines that keep your momentum going throughout the day.

Although every student will have a different schedule based on their commitments, I hope this article gave you a better idea of how to create and stick to a balanced productive schedule.

Which of the 18 routines in this article will you be incorporating into your schedule? Let me know in the comments below!

Also, make sure to check out my student Notion template, which contains all the planning pages you need to organize your student life digitally:

Lastly, for more posts related to productivity, check out:

• 9 Guaranteed Ways to Overcome Procrastination for Students
• 9 Best Night Routines for Students to Skyrocket Productivity
• 11 Before Bed Journal Prompts for Better Sleep & Productivity
• 11 Ways to Stop Getting Distracted By Youtube While Studying
• The Best All-in-One Aesthetic Planner App for Students
• How to Wake Up at 5am to Study””Tips From a Former Night Owl

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