Time Management Report

Over the semester, I have tried to utilize several different time management techniques. One of the strategies I attempted to use was writing down all of my assignments in a planner and everything else that I needed to do. This worked well to help me remember what I needed to get done, however I got lazy and stopped writing down what I needed to get done, so I would often forget to do assignments and such. I believe that this technique would have worked well if I stuck with it, though. I also started to write down everything that I needed to do and get done on a calendar, but I never ended up completing it. I believe it would have been very useful if I completed it, though. Another thing I did was planning out when I would get my assignments done, so I wouldn’t end up having to do a bunch at one time before they were due. This helped a lot so I wasn’t overloaded with assignments to do. I also prioritized my assignments. I would get my assignments done that were the most challenging and took the most time to do first, and do my other assignments that weren’t as challenging later. I found this technique to be very effective since it’s better to get the harder assignments out of the way so you don’t have to feel stressed later about not having enough time to get them done, and then once you finish the harder assignments you can easily get the easier assignments finished. Also, I try to get my assignments done ahead of time if possible, so I can get other things done and have more free time later. However, I didn’t always stick to using these techniques all throughout the semester. I would still frequently put assignments off, procrastinate, and just waste my time doing nothing because I felt lazy. I had a hard time fitting in everything I needed to get done throughout the day because I would procrastinate and put off doing things that I needed to get done. So I would also frequently have to stay up late at night trying to get all of my assignments done. So, throughout the whole semester I haven’t gotten much sleep at all, which has led to more problems. Because I wouldn’t get much sleep at night, I would be so exhausted throughout the day that I would be too tired to do anything, so I wouldn’t get my assignments done or do other things that I needed to get done because of that. I also end up being so tired in class that I can’t focus at all, and I would be fighting to not fall asleep in class. This is something that I definitely need to change next semester. I will try hard to stick to using all of my time management techniques that have worked for me, and I will try really hard to avoid procrastinating and putting things off, so I can have enough time to get a good night of sleep so I can be well rested for the next day. I also want to effectively utilize time management skills so I can have more free time to do other things that I enjoy such as hanging out with my friends which I haven’t had much time to do at all this semester. 

Cultural Event - "The Beauty Myth"

The cultural event I attended was an event held at the Gender Equity Center. The event was a discussion led by the Philosophy professor, Jessica Mayock. The discussion was about the unrealistic beauty standards that women face today, due to the definition of beauty that our society has that not many woman fulfill. Jessica Mayock discussed many issues regarding this topic, and why this has become a problem in our society today. For example, she mentioned how women are raised in a way that "trains" them to act a certain way, such as "throwing like a girl", instead of throwing correctly - all women have the ability to throw, but since we are raised in a way that teaches us that it's unfeminine to throw a ball correctly, we are trained to throw balls in a "girly" way. This phenomenon also applies to many other characteristics of women, such as enjoying makeup and clothing. While growing up, girls learn that wearing makeup and fashionable clothing is what girls are supposed to do, and that is what makes a woman attractive. Many girls really enjoy makeup and fashion, however, as Mayock stated, do girls really enjoy these things, or is it just manifestation of things we have been told and observed? We also discussed how our society's narrow definition of beauty affects women today. Generally, what is perceived as attractive, or the ideal woman, is a woman who is tall, slender, tan, has blonde straight hair, etc. Many woman do not fit into this definition, which has caused the majority of woman to experienced significant insecurities and lack of self confidence. Many of the women in the conference shared their experiences with dealing with society's standard of beauty, and how they feel about it. Many mentioned how they feel insecure about their weight, and how they envy other girls that have their desired weight. Others stated that they felt as if they had to wear makeup, or felt strange not wearing makeup since woman are basically expected to wear makeup. Mayock explained how all of these issues with appearance are due to the fact that society has created a very narrow standard of beauty. She also mentioned that this narrow standard of beauty is worsened due to the media as well. Overall, I think this discussion was very enlightening and it I think it was very interesting to learn about how society has programmed women to act a certain way and the effect that the narrow beauty standard has on ourselves and others.

Campus Event - M.E.Ch.A.

One of the campus events that I have gone to on campus is the Mexican Club (M.E.Ch.A). At first, the leader of the club introduced himself and explained what the club was about. He explained some things that are important to the club, such as being a Chicana/Chicano, which is anyone who acknowledges and works toward the betterment of all under represented communities. Raza, which is translated to the word genre, means the people, all people -- we are all people, we are all Raza. Cultura is also important to the club, which is culture, history, traditions, customs, rituals, dances, and beliefs of a group of people. Then we learned the "anthem" of the club, which we recite at the beginning of every meeting: "Tu eres mi otro yo, you are my other self. I am you and you are me. If I hurt you, I hurt myself. If I love and respect you, I love and respect myself." We then proceeded to play an ice breaker game, and we had to pair up with someone we didn't know, and we had to close our eyes while they led us around the room, and then we would switch. The  goal of the game was to develop trust with a stranger. Afterwards, we discussed some of the upcoming events of the club. Raza Week, which was September 17th - 21st, Dia de La Raza which is on October 11th, and Dia de Los Muertos, which is on November 1st. We came up with some fundraising ideas, such as selling Mexican food at the events. We came up with ideas on what type of foods we should sell, and voted on them. We also discussed other M.E.Ch.A. related events on and off campus, such as the national M.E.Ch.A. conference/meeting at U.C. Davis which will be coming up soon. Overall, it was an interesting and enlightening experience going to the M.E.Ch.A. club. I am planning on attending future M.E.Ch.A. club meetings. I enjoy getting involved in clubs and events that promote civil rights and equity, so I plan to attend other clubs that do so as well.

About me

Hi I'm Britney Becker and I'm 18 years old. I'm from Temecula and I went to Temecula Valley High School. I'm undeclared and I live at the UVA on campus. I like college a lot so far and I think it's really cool living on my own. I'm a vegetarian and I enjoy going to the gym and doing other activities such as hiking. I'd like to meet more new people so it would be cool to get to know you guys!