Undoubtedly, being a college student comes with challenges, but being a college student in November? That’s another type of challenge. There are countless midterm exams, quizzes, papers, and a few of my professors have already begun talking about final projects. At this point in the semester, the lack of motivation and the exhaustion are creeping in making it more difficult to tackle my schoolwork.
When school gets stressful, procrastination is my worst enemy. Suddenly certain tasks feel too daunting and overwhelming, or I second guess my ability to do well on those tasks. It’s easier to pretend they don’t exist until the last minute. While this habit has resulted in good grades in the past, I don’t doubt that it will eventually catch up to me. To prevent the procrastination from getting too severe, I’ve created an action plan of a few habits I’d like to make to help me push through the last few weeks of this semester. After all, winter break is near!
The first habit I want to implement is setting a timer when I’m actively working and taking breaks from studying. This method is also known as the Pomodoro technique which was created by Francesco Cirillo. Fun fact: I used this technique to help me write this article! The traditional way of using this technique is to set a 25-minute timer for working followed by a five-minute break, and after you’ve completed a few rounds, you give yourself a longer break. What I love about this approach is that it gives me full autonomy over how long I’d like to focus. It’s like a game trying to see how much work I can get done in those 25-minute intervals. The Pomodoro technique has also helped me to get started on a task when sitting down and starting feels challenging.
The second habit is breaking down large tasks into smaller, more manageable ones. I tend to overlook the benefits of doing something so simple. I have an upcoming essay to write for my philosophy class which I’m intimidated by, so to make this assignment more approachable, I’m going to start by creating an outline and skimming through the texts we’ve read in class thus far. Then, I’m going to assign a portion of the essay to write each day rather than writing it in one sitting. If you haven’t already, give this method a try on one of your final projects!
The third habit is using a reward system. That is, after I complete an assignment, I’ll reward myself by watching an episode of one of my favorite shows or trying a new boba drink. The act of setting a goal, achieving it, and rewarding yourself afterward results in the release of dopamine in your brain, a neurotransmitter that’s associated with motivation and reward. The reward will reinforce the behavior (completing work) that you want to maintain.
The final habit is being more gracious with myself. It’s easy to be hard on myself when I don’t meet my goals or when I’m not as productive as I’d like to be. Balancing work, school, my social life, and taking care of myself is always a work in progress but it’s the effort that counts. I’ll start doing this by practicing positive affirmations every day. We all deserve to take a deep breath and pat ourselves on the back for all the hard work we do.
I hope these tips will give you the boost that you need to make it to the finish line. Good luck with midterms and finals!