We all know the story. After you have finished all of your mid-terms, your mind and body can’t even begin to imagine why you would continue to keep learning. You feel as if you can’t even bring yourself to go to class let alone to begin to write another paper. Well, the good news is that you can make sure that you can get through the rest of the semester by taking small steps every day!
1) Find a Place Where the Only Thing You Can Possibly Think of Doing is Homework
Try to avoid studying in your dorm room, or in a place where there are a lot of people and distractions. If you are stuck in your room trying to finish your homework, there are going to be a lot of opportunities to do something else. Whether it’s watching a movie, painting your nails, or just talking about almost anything to keep you procrastinating with your roommate, it’s almost impossible not to get distracted! My advice? Go to the library. But, not just any floor in the library. Go to the quiet study floors of the library. That way, you will be surrounded by others who are trying their best to get their work done and you won’t be tempted to talk or play music. The environment alone will allow you to get work done easily.
2) Set up a Reward System
A lot of us won’t do work if we feel we have nothing to gain from doing it. At least, nothing to gain that actually interests us at the moment. If you feel like doing work won’t result in anything great for you, change that by treating yourself every time you finish your work or don’t procrastinate. It can be anything from letting yourself binge watch Game of Thrones for a couple of hours, or going to the local pizza joint for a slice of deliciousness. Either way, make it so you are doing your work for a customized-to-fit-your-wants reward.
3) Think of All the Reasons You Should Go To Class or Do Your Work
If you find that with the cold weather coming it is really hard to get out of that comfy, warm bed, just remember why you need to go to class in the first place. Here are some of the following reasons to go to class:
– College costs money. Don’t waste the money you spend each semester by lying in bed; go get what you paid for.
– You won’t have to worry about catching up on things later on in the week and will avoid the build-up of all the work you have to do.
– For the possibility that you could talk to that hot guy in your class (C’mon, you know it’s a legit reason).
– For how amazing it will feel when you finally understand the material.
– To avoid the reputation you might get as that one person who always misses class.
– Think of all the time you can spend either being forever lazy or going to a concert during the weekend that you wouldn’t have if you had a lot of work to do.
4) Find a Reason to Get Your Work Done Other Than Good Grades
Maybe it’s the upcoming concert at the Mullins Center or the weekend at home that can be spent literally doing nothing. If anything, just find another reason you should get your work done. Sometimes we miss out on all the good times because we spent too much time doing nothing during the week. So when the weekend comes, everyone else is relaxing while we are stuck trying to write a ten page paper in under two hours.
5) Get into A Healthy Routine
One of the best things you can do to stay motivated is to make it hard to break out of the cycle of productivity. By creating a daily routine, it will become a habit that is hard to wander off from. One suggestion to help you create your new routine would be to wake up at the same time every day so you program your biological clock to accept that as the official time your day starts. Another thing you could do is designate certain times to do work and make sure it works with your preferences. For me, I am the most productive in the mornings (I know, who does that?) so if I have work to do, I schedule it for before my 10AM class.
6) Don’t Forget the Things That Make You Healthy and Happy
Also, keep up with the things that may help you to stay motivated! Our mood has a lot to do with how we perform so do things that make you happy. Take time out of your busy schedule to do activities that you enjoy like watching a movie with friends. And don’t forget to keep up healthy habits to boost your mood and keep you on track! Exercising, whether it’s once a week or five times a week, can help you stay in shape and release lots of stress. Eating in a balanced and healthy way can also be a huge help in staying out of the sluggish, lazy behavior.
Whatever you decide to do, one of the most important things to keep in mind is that the smallest tweaks and changes make the biggest difference. If you try to do too many things, you will just end up overwhelmed and stressed. Just try your best to make the changes you know will make a difference and that are possible. None of us are perfect. All of us, at some point in the semester, just want to throw in the books, but don’t get discouraged. Just think, only a little while until you get to enjoy that Thanksgiving feast!