How I Manage School, a Part-Time Job/Internship, and Blogging

Happy Monday! Today is my last first day of school as I begin my final semester, and, because of this, I felt so inspired to write this blog post today about how I manage being a college student, working a part-time job and internship, along with blogging. Because it is NOT easy!

After I started blogging as a business during my junior year, I knew the time commitment it required in order to be successful, and this changed everything! It changed the way I managed my homework and studying for school, and the hours I was working at my part-time job in order to put time into each while also maintaining some kind of social life. I needed to put myself on a schedule and stick to it.

Because my blog is so important to me, it is ranked pretty high on my list of priorities, and due to this, has allowed me to get a good idea of how to go about managing finishing my degree at school and working my part-time job. I have long-term goals for my blog, and in order to achieve those goals in the future, I need to be working as hard as I can now in order to see my desired results. And doing so while being a full-time college student and working a part-time job along with internships is NOT an easy task. I needed to make adjustments to my schedule to incorporate times for going out and shooting photos for the blog, writing content through blog posts or social posts, and even attending events and meet-ups while also making time to work and do my homework for school.

How I Manage My Blog Throughout the Week

Each week can really vary depending on if at the time I am working with brands or not, but there is literally always something to be doing. On an average week, I spend a couple hours each day on Instagram and Pinterest for branding purposes, coming up with content ideas and writing them down, planning out future blog posts, planning out photo shoots, writing blog posts, working on emails, and engaging with my audience on my blog and social media channels. I’d say each day I spend about 4-5 hours on blog related work. There really are no breaks when it comes to this industry!

How I Manage School Throughout the Week

This year, managing school along with my other responsibilities has looked a little bit different. This school year is the first year I have taken all online classes, so I don’t actually attend a physical school location. Because of this, I will say managing these responsibilities is a little bit easier, but still not completely. There really is a lot of time management that goes into how I plan my schedule in order to meet my deadlines.

On days that I need to get a photoshoot done, I try to do so in the late morning/early afternoon during prime daylight, especially during winter time so I’m not stuck taking photos out in the dark! And because of this, I try to do a lot of my online lectures in the morning before photo shoots, then take a little lunch break where I shoot photos and take a break from school, then continue with homework for the rest of the afternoon/evening. I spend at least 6-8 hours per day working on school, and that includes watching lectures and taking notes, completing homework assignments, and working on papers/projects. Of course, some weeks are busier than others such as during midterms or finals, and when this is the case, I do spend a bit more time on school than I do on blog work, just because getting good grades is also important to me in finishing up my degree!

How I Manage Working a Part-Time Job/Internship

I’ve worked a couple different part-time jobs and have had the same part-time job in retail for about 2.5 years now and luckily have been able to have a flexible schedule with my employer. School always comes first before my part-time job so I work anywhere from 1-3 days per week in order for me to have an income aside from blogging. I essentially make my own hours each week, so if I feel I am having a pretty slow school week, I’ll take on more hours at work, and if I am having a busy school week, I do not work as much. And on school breaks, I do take advantage of that time by working more hours and spending a lot more time with blog work as well.

When it comes to internships, this is my first year experiencing that and adding on an additional responsibility to my schedule. I worked my first internship last semester from July-September, so during the first half of my internship, I was on summer break from school where I worked about 25-35 hours per week at my internship along with working my part-time job and blogging, whereas during the second half of my internship I had started school which I then started working about 15-25 hours per week at my internship in order to make time for my other responsibilities. I then started my second internship in October which was easier to manage with my schedule as I took on a remote position with a flexible and smaller time commitment each week.

After reflecting on all of my responsibilities, I’d say my biggest tip when it comes to managing your own responsibilities (even if you have a blog too) is do what you can handle and know your priorities. I know if I take on too much at once, I cannot handle it and I start to get very stressed out, which for me, leads to panic and anxiety attacks. School and blogging are top priorities for me and is what I spend most of my time on throughout each week. In order to achieve my long-term blogging goals, I need to work as hard as I can on it now to see my desired results, and in order to be successful in school and finding a full-time job after I graduate, I need to work as hard as I can on that as well.

Outfit Details:

Both my top and ankle boots are from Lulus and can be shopped by clicking the banner below! Wearing the Sofia Tan Suede Pointed Toe Ankle Booties in size 6.5 (fits true to size and love the style and comfort!) and the Comfort Zone White Long Sleeve Thermal Top in size XS (so comfortable with a nice oversized fit!) My bag can be shopped under the Shop Amazon tab (under $20!) and other outfit details linked under Shop My Looks!