Around midterms, things tend to get messy. Redirecting time and energy from your daily responsibilities to prepare for exams and papers tends to leave you feeling frazzled, disorganized, and without clean underwear. By making a few tweaks in your free time, you can eliminate a few external stressors that seem to compound during this frantic time.
Your Closet
Is there a more sublime feeling than looking into a color-coded, organized closet? An organized closet can shave minutes off your morning routine, and prevent your favorite collared shirt from looking wrinkled when you realize you forgot all about the internship fair that starts in twenty minutes. Instead of treating your closet like a hamper, invest in organizers that will utilize the limited space of your closet. If you love clothes and find that you rarely have room for them, invest in large plastic bins to store your clothes that are out of season so that you can find weather-appropriate outfits in a snap!
The Freezer
It’s easy to remember to clean out the fridge considering its contents are perishable, but it’s even easier to forget about the untouched microwaveable entrees you bought a month ago. Freezer space is already limited, and forgetting to check on your items in the freezer will eventually pile up. Try taking inventory of your frozen items once every few weeks- your wallet and roommates will surely thank you. Who knows, you could be inspired to try out a new recipe with all that frozen spinach you’ve been hoarding… or you could just microwave a burrito.
Your Inbox
I am guilty of keeping e-mails that are not important. There, I said it. Keeping your inbox clean is a pretty easy task, but it is one that very few people keep as a habit. The next time you have a free minute or two before class, go through your inbox and delete ten to fifteen e-mails that you don’t need. If you repeat this small step before your classes, you could have an inbox that only has a few unread emails at a time (one can dream). Another excellent way to keep track of important emails for clubs, family, work, and classes is to organize your emails by category.
Toxic Friendships
This one is a little trickier than the aforementioned messes, so let me try to simplify. If you have a friend who prevents you from becoming the best version of yourself, let them go. Someone who belittles your pain or accomplishments is not your friend. Someone who consistently tries to one up you is not your friend. Someone who emotionally drains you to the point where you are physically exhausted is not your friend. It can be hard to cut ties with someone who you have fun with or someone who is already in your social circle, but eliminating these people from your life will give you a new appreciation for your true friends.