A lot of students, whether they are burnt out, depressed, home sick, tired, or battling senioritis, will begin to lose motivation around this time of the semester. Here are a few little tricks to keep your mind focused in everyday things.
Getting work done
If you’re like me, you are constantly telling yourself you can get more done at home, but when you get home, you go to sleep. What I’ve found helpful is getting a good pair of headphones, finding a nice spot, and making a checklist. On the checklist are little things that need about a half hour to finish, so it allows you to look back at things you’ve done. I always list shower, eat (three times) and then every assignment that is due tomorrow or the following day. If it is a paper, I break the paper up into single page bullets, so every time I get a page done I congratulate myself by crossing another thing off the to-do list. This makes larger assignments less abstract and stressful and easier to tackle. While coffee shops often have the right balance between being busy and quiet, you can only spend so much time there. It is better to find a place like a corner of the library, a comfy chair in a university lounge, or any other place where you could just rot away in if you so choose. During the fall, I find it helpful to study outside because the cold keeps me awake and there is endless space.
Working out
This trick is age old: get into your workout clothes! And, if you have the money, go out and get new shoes, yoga pants, sports bras, or t-shirts that you’d be excited to wear and show off. Keep a list of reasons why you want to be healthier. For example, this can look like, “swim faster,” “climb stairs without panting,” or “toned arms.” Lastly, even more important than getting into cute clothes: put your smelly sneakers on. You aren’t going to want to hop into bed if your feet are ready to run.
Going to class or work in the morning
Finally, the hardest of all day-to-day mountains to climb is getting out of bed in the first place. Before solving your anti-motivation problem, identify what it is that is keeping you stagnant. Is it feeling overwhelmed, fear, depression, or boredom? Discover what you need to know how to help yourself. Little things that I do to give myself incentive to get out of bed are laying my clothes for the following day out on the night before, keeping my room a comfortable temperature, and buying nice breakfast foods. When I lay out my clothes, I put the entire outfit together including earrings, underwear, socks, etc.: An outfit that I look forward to wearing. When your apartment is cold and your bed is warm, it is very hard to want to get out of bed and even harder to get out of the shower. Turning up the thermostat might spike your utility bill but just consider it an investment in your life. My last great way to invest in yourself is to buy good food. Have something to wake up for! If not for your responsibilities, wake up for waffles.