With more daylight, warm sunshine, and the promise of summer vacation just around the corner, it can be hard to stay motivated to keep on track until the end of the semester. Whether your focus is academic, athletic, or otherwise, here are some simple tips to help accomplish your goals and make sure you’re going forwards.
- Make a Morning Routine
Making and following a productive morning routine is a great way to set yourself up for a good day. Despite grogginess and a general feeling of “I’d rather do anything than get out of bed right now,” even doing something small can get the ball rolling. If you’re struggling with stress, take the opportunity to do a quick yoga session, stretch, or sit for a brief meditation session. Your morning ritual could even be something as simple as making the bed. Whatever it is, choose something that will ground you and suit your personal needs.
- Eat the Frog
Following up on making a morning routine, another way to set up for a good day is to get something out of the way as soon as possible. “Eating the frog” just means doing that one thing that you know you’re going to procrastinate or dread doing, first thing in the morning. Getting it out of the way will make you feel better and let you focus on your other responsibilities, rather than dreading it for hours on end or endlessly kicking it down the road. The boost you get from accomplishing something early in the day combined with the relief of not having to deal with whatever you’ve been cringing from will put you on a productivity kick!
- Break Things Down
Facing a huge task and don’t know where to start? Break it down into little, manageable steps that you can tackle day by day. Whether it’s pages of textbook reading or a criminally long essay, turn it into smaller chunks. That way, you’ll get a little done at a time rather than avoiding a supposedly monumental assignment, then ending up having to pull an all-nighter.
- Prioritize
Some jobs may seem easier or more enjoyable than others, but some are more important than others. Organize your duties in a list depending on how soon you have to do them, how difficult they are, and how long they’ll take. Make sure to consider things outside just your academic, work, and extracurricular responsibilities. Your health is important too. As magical as caffeine is, you shouldn’t be leaning on it too much; aim for at least seven hours of sleep a night.
- Be Kind To Yourself
It’s okay not to be perfect! Taking care yourself will go a long way with your productivity in the long run. Don’t feel too bad if you need to skip an extra study session to catch up on sleep, or taking some time after long day of classes to de-stress with some nice music or a hot shower.