Productivity anxiety: The feeling that you are never doing enough work.
This is how you feel when scrolling through instagram at night and realizing that everyone except you has their life together (they usually don’t). No matter how much work you got done that day, you still feel like it wasn’t enough. Or maybe you didn’t do anything that day and you’ve started to feel guilty. No matter what the issue is, implementing a routine into your everyday life may help you kick the feeling of productivity anxiety to the curb.
Ever since beginning college, I’ve noticed an overwhelming sense of stress and the feeling that I’m not doing enough, especially at night when I’m relaxing in bed. Should I be getting ahead on homework instead of sleeping? It wasn’t until recently that I discovered these feelings were stemming from the lack of routine in my life – some days I had in person classes and some days I didn’t. Some days I left my apartment and some days I didn’t. Some days I woke up early and some days I slept in.
Lower stress levels lead to better mental health, less anxiety and more time to relax. However, something no one ever told me was that I could achieve these effects without exploiting myself. Here’s how I created a college-friendly routine perfect for me.
Don’t compromise on your favorite things. One of my favorite parts of my day is my wind-down before bed. I take extra time to have dinner, do something self-care related, shower, do my skincare routine and read a good book. Because I have a rather lengthy night routine, I make sure I have time in my routine to accomplish the whole thing every night. This means that I wake up earlier and have a very focused work day so my assignments for the day don’t have to spill over into the night.
You have to get out of the house. I didn’t notice how much of a toll being isolated took on me mentally. Even if I don’t have any in person classes on a particular day, I still go to a good study spot on campus to attend meetings and work on assignments. Being in the presence of other students makes me feel like a hard-working college student. On days like Sundays that I take a break from school work, I make sure to get out of my apartment and go on a walk, grab coffee or go out to buy myself flowers (it’s so important to practice self love).
Setting goals is going to be your best friend. I make sure to write a to-do list every morning so I know what I want to get done before my cut off time. Having everything written down in front of me helps me remember everything and hold myself accountable.
Wake up around the same time every day. I’m not saying this has to be at 7 A.M. (unless you have a dreaded 8 A.M.), but try to only sleep in on weekends. When I started doing this, I noticed that I felt more accomplished and happier. I was even able to fall asleep easier and earlier.
Your routine doesn’t have to look exactly like mine or anyone else’s. Playing around with new ideas will help you find what works best for you and your lifestyle, just have fun with it.
https://www.nm.org/healthbeat/healthy-tips/health-benefits-of-having-a-routine