It’s been an interesting year, and to be honest, taking classes this spring semester was one of the main activities that kept me busy in a positive way. Although I took all of my classes at home virtually and felt a bit isolated residing away from all of my friends, I at least enjoyed having something to attend. With summer just around the corner, I know it’ll be easy for me to want to just waste my time and count the days until I move back to Blacksburg this fall. So, here are six tasks I’ll be holding myself accountable to do this summer to make the most of it.
- Creating an exercise plan
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This past spring semester, I was been pretty terrible at maintaining an exercise routine. I only ran about three times total over the past few months, even though running is one of my favorite forms of exercise and a great way to get much-needed sunshine when stuck inside most of the time. Although I take daily Vitamin D supplements, getting out and enjoying the outdoors is still very essential for a healthy lifestyle and overall happiness.
- Monitoring social media usage
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I’m on social media often, and unfortunately, it’s often too tempting to browse Twitter or Instagram in the middle of a Zoom class. I still participated in classes frequently and made sure I was actively taking notes, but social media is quite a distraction. There are certain benefits of social media, such as keeping up with the latest news and staying in touch with friends, perhaps even making new friends as well. But with everything else going on, there needs to be a balance. I won’t necessarily have a screen time limit this summer, but I’ll turn off as many notifications as possible and set a period of time each day where I purposefully put my phone out of sight.
- Setting a sleep schedule
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I’m a night owl, but sometimes accidentally seeing the sunrise makes me yearn to be a morning person. While I don’t think I’m going to completely give up my midnight endeavors and constant occurrences of sleeping in too late for this summer, I’ll at least try to maintain a consistent bedtime and wake time, no matter how late either of those things are. Consistency in one’s sleeping schedule is key to making the rest of the day go smoothly, even if there’s nothing outstanding to do.
- Doing well in my internship
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I’m lucky that I have an internship set for this summer that relates to my major and my career goals. While it’s going to be remote, it’s with a company with which I feel I bonded quickly during the interview process a couple of months ago. I’m going to ensure that I stay communicative to maintain these connections, and, in order to make this experience as beneficial as possible, I should perform to the best of my ability so that I can have future references, leave a solid impression and learn as extensively as possible. Doing so would also help me be better prepared for any further in-major classes I take before I graduate.
- Preparing for the fall semester
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I’ll be taking 20 credits next semester, so I’m going to have to make sure I’m prepared to perform decently in each one of them, especially with juggling a variety of subjects at once. I’ve never successfully completed more than 15 credits at a time, so this upcoming semester will be an extra busy one. Thankfully, I’m so excited for every single class that I’m enrolled in, so my motivation shouldn’t be a problem — hopefully. To alleviate some of the stress, I’ll get my textbooks and other class materials as early as possible, and perhaps get a head start in some of the material over the summer.
- Having fun and staying hopeful
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Summer isn’t a proper summer without some kind of fun. As more and more people get vaccinated, I can’t wait to start travelling again, go hiking more often and explore more of the world if guidelines slowly ease back. Hopefully, before the summer ends, COVID-19 won’t be as much of an issue in this regard. Even if things do stay relatively the same, there’s always more to look forward to in the future.
No matter what your plans are, or if you’re deciding to use the time to just rest and relax, I hope that these ideas inspire you in some way to enjoy this summer as much as you can.