With finals officially in sight, it’s time for the majority of us to sit down, crack open the books, and study the nights away trying to catch up on studying we should have been doing all along. Sounds easy enough, right? Except what actually ends up happening is we sit down (on our beds), crack open the books (and by books I mean Netflix), and study the night away (and by study I mean binge watch until we fall asleep). Let’s face it: after week 10 we are completely burnt out and the last thing we want to do is study for finals, especially when Spring Break is so close. But, we are all in this together and in order to finish out the quarter strong here are 5 ways to regain motivation just in time for finals!
1. Remember your goals
When things get tough it’s easy to forget why we’re here and what we are striving for. Every time you begin to feel down, and thinking what’s the point, remind yourself what your goals are and where you hope to be one day. Granted, one final doesn’t determine the rest of your life, but it’s always nice to remember why you are here, studying and doing something that you love.
2. Change your perspective
We’ve all hated classes at one point or another, and instead of accepting the fact that we just have to get through 10 weeks, we dwell and dwell on the fact that we have to take a certain class. Been there, done that, and I can honestly say that having that perspective makes everything about the class worse. Changing your perspective on things like that will make things so much easier on yourself, and will make it easier to get through a couple hours of studying. Remember, after the final is over, you will never have to experience the class or professor (hopefully) again.
3. Make a list
Making a list of things you have to get done is the perfect way to visualize what you have to do, and also allows you to keep everything organized and prioritized. It is a foolproof way to never forget to do something, and who doesn’t love the feeling of being able to cross something off of a list?!
4. Take on one class at a time
It’s so easy to become so overwhelmed that you don’t want to do anything anymore, especially when you have multiple finals to study for, and even worse when you have multiple on the same day. To prevent your brain from working on overload, take on one class at a time, instead of trying to do everything at once. Make set schedules of times to study for certain classes, and in those times only work on the class assigned. Don’t forget to leave time for breaks in between, or else you’ll get brain fatigue!
5. Listen to your body
This one is probably the most important. In order to succeed, you have to listen to your body. Staying up all night cramming won’t do you or your body any good. If you feel tired, go to sleep, or if you feel hungry, get a snack. If you ignore how you’re feeling you won’t be able to concentrate well when studying or taking the actual final. If your body feels run down, chances are you will have zero motivation, so take a couple minutes to yourself everyday and stay healthy!
Remember Gauchos: just one week of finals and then it’s Spring Break! Good luck!