1.
MANAGING YOUR FOCUS
Rashmika Nawaratne
Data Scientist | Lecturer

2.
WHAT’S NEXT …
Why did I have to learn to focus on time
What didn’t work for me?
What worked for me?
What’s after CSE?
Tips to excel at CSE & Beyond
Final thoughts

3.
WHY DID I HAVE TO LEARN TO MANAGE TIME FOCUS ON TIME
• Become passionate about computers
• Learn Programming
• Not 1 language, but 1 language per week!
• Assignments/ Extra projects
• Good grades in assignments is not enough!
• Time ⋉ Opportunities
• CSE push you beyond your limits
• Events, dramas, public speaking,
• hackathons, competitions
• Standing out from the crowd
• Not competition, but in your own merits
• 1st class, GPA matters!
• Manage Stress &
Anxiety
• Increase output
• Balance study/ family/
everything else
• Save time
• Boost your confidence

4.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• Start early and all, but keep refining till the last
moment.
• Good to improve further, but the problem is you
procrastinate to improve thinking you have more time.
• Lose the idea that all your tasks will ever be all finished
• Prioritizing the work that needs to be done
• Making deliberate choices that move us toward the
most important outcomes.
#1 There’s no magical finish line where everything is done, once and for all.

5.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• Yes, multitasking is a skill.
• But takes a longer time to master – do not overestimate yourselves and be
unproductive!
• Throughout my undergrad and postgrad, I tried different multi tasking
approaches.
• Best is to finish the assignment in one go taking an entire day or two!
#2 Multitasking does not always make you super productive

6.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• A rested you is a better you.
• And a rested you is always a more productive you.
• Keep a habit to sleep 7-8 hours per day.
• Doesn’t hurt to break this for day or two for assignment etc.
#3 Sleep is not only for wimps

7.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• I’ll have time next week before the deadline to complete it.
• But always, always, more work falls on your plate tomorrow.
• You might wait for the last moment expecting an extension (You might get an
extension but not worth the wait as you have similar deadlines and stress)
#4 Overestimating the future.

8.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• Who doesn’t have this habit?
• First step is to identify you have this addiction.
• Second step is to estimate how much you lose in a day. (Use a screen time tool)
• Third step is to take measures to overcome
1. Enforce time limit to social media on phone/computer
2. Delete apps (last resort)
#5 Two min break leads to 1 hour on social media

9.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• Never, never works!
• If you wish to start something new, start now, start today.
• Continue for 7 days, and then again 21 days, it would have become a habit and
be with you for a longer time.
#6 I will start managing my work and time from next semester

10.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• Stop saying you don’t have the time.
• Start admitting you didn’t prioritize it.
• You have the same amount of time as Elon Musk.
#7 Never say I don’t have enough time.

11.
WHAT DID NOT WORK FOR ME?
• No single magic bullet for managing your time more effectively
• What works for me, might not work for you
• Always consider your inner clock
• Are you a morning person or a night owl? Both work perfect.
• One incremental improvement in your focus at a time, doesn’t need to be
perfect.
• Only requirement is to be consistent!
#8 A perfect time management system exists.

12.
WHAT WORKED FOR ME?

13.
LONG TERM PLAN
LongTermPlan
Excel at CSE
Good GPA/ First Class
Assignments
Exam
Excel at extra-curricular
activities
Sports
Clubs/ Societies/
Volunteering
Industry Placement at a
top company
Technical Skills
Excel at technologies at
your preferred company
Project Portfolio Addition to assignments
Online Presence Blog/ LinkedIn/ Medium
Personal Development
Read Books
Mental + Physical Health
Family/ Relationships

14.
SEMESTER PLAN
• Exam Plan
• At least one hackathon/ Extra Projects
• CSE Events/ Clubs or Societies/ Sports
• …
Apportion long term goal to semesters

15.
SEMESTER PLAN Exam Plan (2 Months prior)
Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
13 14 15 16 17 18 19
20 21
BD
22
BD
23
BD
24
BD
25
SE
26
SE
27
Buffer
28
SE
29
SE
30
NW
1
NW
2
NW
3
NW
4
Buffer
5
DM
6
DM
7
DM
8
DM
9
OOP
10
OOP
11
Buffer
12
OOP
13
OOP
14
BD
15
BD
16
SE
17
SE
18
NW
19
NW
20
DM
21
DM
22
OOP
23
OOP
24
OOP
Exam
• Available subjects (5)
• OOP
• Data Mining (DM)
• Networking (NW)
• Software Engineering
Project (SE)
• Business
Development (BD)
Write them on a coloured cardboard, or an A3 Paper in front of your work desk.

16.
WEEKLY PLAN & DAILY PLAN
• Apportion assignments to weekly plan
• Go through and develop the weekly
plan on every Sunday
• Try to spend ~30 minutes and capture
all potential work
• Include daily 1 hour to revise each
subject and make notes
• You could go digital using a Google
Calendar as well. But for me, pen and
paper works well! Recommend to try
with pen and paper.
Week Plan
• More of a check list of tasks plan for
the day.
• Try to have smaller tasks.
• Have the list prioritized.
• Do not have more than 5 tasks.
• Do not tightly pack the day – you must
have buffers for catch ups, extended
lunch, social media etc.
• Always, keep room for unexpected
disturbances, inevitable crises!
Daily Plan

17.
WEEKLY PLAN & DAILY PLAN

18.
DOES THE EFFORT WORTH IT?

19.
ALTERNATE CAREER PATHS
Undergrad
• CSE Batch of ‘09
Industry
• 99X Technology (99X)
• SLASSCOM
• SL2College
Postgrad
• PhD in AI
• Projects
• Lecturing
Industry/ Career
• Data Scientist
Academic/ Passion
• Teach and Projects
2009 2014 2017 2020
Industry: Software Architect
Academic: Senior Lecturer + Consultant
Industry: Business Development Manager
Entrepreneur: CEO/ CTO
Government: Deputy Director of IT
Actor/ Singer …

20.
CONCLUSION: TOP TIPS TO EXCEL AT CSE & BEYOND
• GPA/ 1st class matters… Unless you are very clear of your passion/goal.
• Highest priority for exams and assignments
• This will lead to many possibilities in Academia (PhD’s with Top Professors)
• Your technical portfolio matters. Don’t hide – show off, and share with
community. (e.g., medium articles, GitHub, blog posts, video tutorials…)
• Develop yourself to become a professional
• CSES events, organize events, community projects, AIESEC, Rotaract, IEEE, SL2College

21.
FINAL THOUGHTS
• All these can be ruined by negative attitude!
• Be humble, kind, and helpful.
• Stand out from the crowd not by pushing others down, but pulling them with
you to rise!

22.
Thank you.