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A long-exposure shot of a moving subway train and advertisement posters at the station
A long-exposure shot of a moving subway train and advertisement posters at the station
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Life

How to Stay Productive While on Break

Sophia Whittemore
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Dartmouth chapter.

Do you ever dream of all the amazing things you’re going to do during break while you’re in school? Whether it’s catching up with friends or picking up that instrument you always wanted to play, here are ten tips on how to stay productive when getting back home.

  1. Clean your room.  A clean space leads to the illusion of productivity. Fake it till you make it. If your room is clean, you’ll probably feel better about doing work there.

  2. Wake up early. Getting a proper amount of sleep and getting up at a decent hour will ALSO help you transition better when you inevitably have to go back to school.

  3. Write list. Checking off things you’ve already done during the day is a great way to feel proud of doing things while also keeping track of what your schedule is.

  4. Go to bed early. I know, it’s tempting to stay up into the wee hours of the night binge-watching TV shows. While that’s super fun to do, you should also catch some Zs and protect your health!

  5. Get your blood pumping. Take a nice walk and aim for 10,000 steps a day or take up dancing!

  6. Eat good meals. I know, snacks are always more fun. But eating a good balance of grains, fruit/veggies, and proteins help keep you focused and alert.

  7. Set reminders on your phone. (It’ll also keep you from scrolling through your phone for too long, the easiest source of procrastination.)

  8. Repeat your goals to yourself. If you have a big, overarching goal for the break, it’s always good to remind yourself of it. For example: going to the gym, finding a job, or working on a bigger creative project.

  9. Tell your friends/family about your goals. It always helps to have others check in on you to remind you about your progress. And, it’s always more fun to have people cheering you on!

  10. Feel accomplished about what you have done. Sometimes, life gets in the way. Maybe the weather was too rainy for you to run errands. Maybe you got sick and couldn’t work out. That’s okay!

 

Remember, even if all you did for the day was take care of yourself, that’s totally valid. And you should be proud of that. :)

 

Sophia Whittemore is a Correspondent for the Dartmouth HXCampus branch. When not working on HXCampus, they're writing webcomics on Webtoons, Pride books for Wattpad, was a staff writer at AsAm News, and has published the "Impetus Rising" series back when they were in high school. Sophia's also a geek, but who isn't?