Life as a commuter student can be exhausting. The first few weeks of commuting consisted of me trying different routes to get to my university to find out which one was the quickest, finding parking then finding my buildings hoping that I wouldn’t get lost. As the weeks went on, the sound of my alarm became  exhausting and I dreaded it. However, changing my mindset as a commuter student made my university experience exciting. Here’s how I did it.
- Downloaded/ created new playlists every week.
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On Spotify, there is a feature which is called discover weekly. Having new music to listen to while driving made the drive more pleasant and boosted my serotonin. Recently, I have been listening to podcasts to change it up while driving. Driving the same route to university can be boring but new music allows for new favourite songs and dancing in the car.
- The process of getting ready in the mornings
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Hearing my alarm going off in the morning can be exhausting. When all you want is the extra hour of sleep and in my case staying in my warm cozy bed. Instead of resisting the urge of getting out of bed, it has helped me to do my hair in the morning. Recently, I have been trying new TikTok hairstyles. Accounts I like to look at for hairstyles include @kennedy.powers and @emiliekiser on TikTok. Doing my hair makes me feel productive and increases my serotonin for the day.
I have been loving this hairstyle recently from @kennedy.powers on Tiktok!
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMY9wUaNy/
I also like to plan out my outfits the night before. If I do this, I am not worrying about what to wear which leads me to be late for school. I find a lot of casual outfit inspirations from Pinterest!
- Making my bed in the morning and opening my blinds
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The first thing I do after turning off my alarm is open my blinds and make my bed. Something so simple as making my bed in the morning before school makes me feel productive and ready to start my day. When it is a nice day out, seeing the sunshine after opening my blinds helps improve my mood.
- Making matcha in the morning and making breakfast.
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Before school in the mornings, I like to make something for breakfast. Recently it has been an iced matcha latte and a cream cheese bagel. Despite waking up a little earlier in the morning I like to sit down before leaving to eat a good breakfast. Better yet I am also saving money by not going to get Tim Hortons/ Starbucks in the morning.
My matcha recipe I have been loving recently!
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMY9w4c5K/
- Getting involved in your university/ college student centre.
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As a commuter student getting caught up in the loop of leaving for school, attending school, and then leaving removes new experiences and opportunities. Here, at my university, there is a student centre with new activities and events always going on. Recently, I attended a wellness activity where there were face masks and crafts. Meeting new people through activities has been fun and makes me feel involved with my university.
- Changing my study space
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Changing up my study space has impacted my studying habits so much. Studying in the same place for too long has increased my boredom and not reached my maximum study potential. Exploring different study places around campus has allowed me to explore new buildings and improve my study space. Recently I have discovered study spaces that are open and provide natural light and they have quickly become a favourite of mine.