It’s that dreaded time of the year again for college students. As finals week approaches, it can be hard to focus on anything that’s not exam-related. While it may seem like your success is measured in hours spent studying, it’s not. Sacrificing your mental and physical health for extra time to hit the books will likely make you crash and burn. Grades are important, but not as important as taking care of yourself.
If we’re being honest, there’s no such thing as a stress-free finals week, but here are few tips to help manage exam chaos.
Stay healthy and hydrated
A big mistake college students make is skipping meals or eating fast food out of convenience. It may seem like you’re wasting valuable time when you take a break to cook a meal, but breaks help you to recharge. Cooking your own meals allows you to be in control of the ingredients, and it’s important to eat foods high in vitamins and minerals to keep you focused and energized. Drinking water is a crucial part of maintaining good health. Keeping your body healthy is important for productivity.
Get organized ahead of time
Gather all of your study materials ahead of time and set aside a distraction-free space to study in. Deep clean and declutter your living space. This may seem irrelevant to studying, but knowing that I have a clean room helps me focus and is one less thing to stress about.
Sleep more
Students tend to force themselves to stay away instead of just going to sleep. Forfeiting sleep to study is actually counterintuitive because sleep deprivation leads to memory loss, inability to learn and will affect your overall efficiency. Create a study/homework schedule ahead of time will help you to avoid all nighters.
Treat yourself
Exams are hard but you’ll make it through. Rewarding yourself for your hard work with a spa day, shopping spree or nice dinner can give you something to look forward to. You can create your own rewards system and get friends in on it too. Turning mundane tasks like studying into a fun competition with your friends is a good incentive to work harder.
Don’t be afraid to say no to someone
This is one week out of the semester to really focus on yourself and your studies. If your friends ask you to go out or a coworker asks you to pick up a shift, don’t be afraid to tell them no. I guarantee they’ll understand and you’ll feel a lot better if you take that time to relax instead.