This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Case chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.
Finals is a trying time for us all—as soon as we’re relieved of the non-stop craziness of classes and activities, we’re thrown into a chaotic two-week period of terrifying academic pressure. Gone are the beautiful days of nothingness and Netflix marathons, because suddenly many of us need to cram a semester’s worth of material into our exhausted brains. These days are filled with endless hours in front of our laptops and textbooks, as our happiness and will to carry on slowly wither away.
When I’m faced with a difficult time, such as this one, I look to my role model/ideal BFF Mindy Kaling to keep me going. Mindy (I like to think that we’re on a first-name basis) is confident, perseverant and straight-up hilarious. The next couple of weeks will be rough, but these helpful tips and our girl Mindy can get us through it.
1. Sometimes you might feel like getting an A on that exam or that paper is out of reach—it’s not! The first step to success is saying that you can do it. Mindy thinks she can do anything, and so should you.
2. Reward yourself when you accomplish something, no matter how small. Did you just finish reviewing a chapter? Treat yo’self. Did you just make the most epic study guide of all time? Treat yo’self. Did you get yourself out of bed after an especially gratifying nap? You deserve a treat for that, too.
3. Fake it ‘til you make it. No matter how bad of a day you might be having, it’s been proven that smiling more and acting happy can actually improve your mood. Whether you were up all night and now have to face a final exam, or if you didn’t get the grades you had hoped for, the first step is to pick yourself up and keep going. Things will get better.
4. Going on and on about your workload and how stressed you are isn’t going to help you do any better—stop talking and start working! You’ll be thankful for it on the day of that stressful exam “I do not think stress is a legitimate topic of conversation, in public anyway. No one ever wants to hear how stressed out anyone else is, because most of the time everyone is stressed out. Going on and on in detail about how stressed out I am isn’t conversation. It’ll never lead anywhere. No one is going to say, “Wow, Mindy, you really have it especially bad. I have heard some stories of stress, but this just takes the cake.”
5. Relax! Mindy’s character on her kickass show, The Mindy Project, calms down by lying on the floor of her office and having a lot of feelings. Do what you gotta do.
6. Remember this will all be over soon and you are awesome.
When studying for that killer exam or writing what seems like the longest paper ever, try to stay positive and awesome. And when you’re done, celebrate by reading Mindy’s book, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) and binge-watch her show, The Mindy Project.