This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at McGill chapter.

Gone are the laid back days of post-midterm drowsiness. Well, almost. Finals are approaching fast whether you have laid out a study plan to tackle them or not. Studying is almost always tedious, but it can be especially painful when it is for the finals and you are dealing with papers and 3-hour exams at the same time. It is no secret that good results on your finals require more than just good studying; it is a marathon, and you have to take care of yourself if you want to do your best. In addition to the obvious basics such as eating well and getting enough sleep, you have to have the mindset that will help you get the results you want – both a peaceful and focused one. So, with that, here are 5 websites that will help you power through your finals.

1. Calm.com

Calm.com is a website that aims to bring clarity and peace to your life through meditation and mindfulness. The sign up is free, and you can choose from a variety of guided meditations, ranging from “increase focus for peak performance” to “reduce stress with meditation.” Calm also has a sleep stories feature, which promises a smooth transition to a deep and peaceful sleep through relaxing fiction stories that will take you to far away lands and different times. Most of the guided sessions and sleep stories are unfortunately locked, meaning you would have to pay for membership to see them, but there are a decent amount of free ones available. Use Calm to bring yourself to the present and to catch your breath between your study sessions.

2. Coffitivity

If you’ve ever felt like studying in a coffee shop but were afraid of being distracted by the people and the constant movement around you, then Coffitivity is the website for you. Coffitivity boosts your focus and creativity by recreating the ambient sounds of a coffee shop. You can choose the kind of ambient sound you want to hear; whether it’s the Morning Murmur, Lunchtime Lounge, or University Undertones, Coffitivity promises a productive day at your favourite coffee shop but from the comfort of your own home. Just make yourself a cup of coffee, tune in, and let Coffitivity do the rest.

3. Noisli

Noisli is another website that creates ambient sounds to improve your focus, but unlike Coffitivity, Noisli features sounds of nature in addition to the classic coffee shop sounds. With Noisli, you can mix these different sounds to create the perfect study environment. I myself am currently listening to a mix of rain and train sounds and it is the perfect writing companion. If you go on the website, you will also notice that Noisli provides a color changing background so you can benefit from chromotherapy, the science of using colours to adjust body vibrations to frequencies that result in health and harmony. It’s a feast for ears and eyes.

4. Tomato-timer

This flexible online timer uses the Pomodoro Technique, which is a time management technique created by Francesco Cirillo in the early 80s for a more productive way to work and study. The technique uses a timer to break down work into smaller intervals, mostly 25 minutes in length, separated by short and long breaks. Here is how it works: once you decide what task you want to tackle, simply set the timer for 25 minutes and start working on your task until the timer expires. Once it expires, you have a short break of 5 minutes. Every 4 pomodoro sessions give you a long break of 10 minutes. Imagine how much work you can get done in a day using this!

5. Cold Turkey Blocker

Cold Turkey is a downloadable blocker that does exactly what its name suggests; it blocks apps and websites. With fewer distractions, you can focus and finish your work on time. It is highly customizable, so you can set it to block anything from a specific website to the entire Internet. However, it can also be very difficult to circumvent if you lock in your settings, meaning you will not be able to change the settings and go back on those websites before you finish task at hand. This setting is optional of course, and even thought it is not for everyone, it guarantees that you will follow through with your goals. The basic version is free; however, the pro option with a one-time fee gives you more options of customize your study by creating a scheduler and break intervals.

Happy studying!

Images obtained from:

http://www.thecoolector.com/noisli-app/

https://www.wonderoftech.com/tech-tools-relax/

http://www.classycareergirl.com/2016/04/business-writing-improve-skills/

Information obtained from:

https://getcoldturkey.com/

https://www.noisli.com/

https://lifehacker.com/productivity-101-a-primer-to-the-pomodoro-techniq…