Ever wondered how your life would be if you didn’t have that habit? I know you’re thinking of one. We all have at least one bad habit, whether that be getting Uber Eats instead of walking 10 minutes to the store or putting all your semi-clean/semi-dirty clothes on the chair in the corner of your room. To help you become a better you, I’ve compiled a list of five habits that I think all students should avoid and I give a little advice on how to break them.
1. Snoozing your alarm
I know, I know, we all do it, but hitting snooze over and over isn’t such a great idea. According to the meditation app Headspace, when we snooze our alarm, “we are disrupting the REM sleep — or dream sleep — which is a restorative sleep state … the disruption can trigger a response that increases your blood pressure and heartbeat.” What I suggest is moving your alarm across your room and forcing yourself to get out of bed to turn it off. You’re more likely to get up instead of rolling over to turn off the alarm.
2. Procrastinating
We’ve all been there: your prof gives you two weeks to do an assignment and you keep putting off working on it. Next thing you know it’s the day before it’s due and you’re feeling more pressure than before. By not procrastinating, you’re more likely to receive a better grade, since you have more time to work on the assignment and your stress levels won’t be through the roof. What I suggest is breaking up the assignment into small, daily chunks. For example, say you have a five-page paper to write in two weeks. Spend as little as 20 minutes every day working on it. By the time the paper is due, you’ll have written and edited your paper with significantly lower levels of stress compared to what you would’ve had if you crammed it in the night before.
3. Screen time before bed/first thing in the morning
We’ve all heard it: blue light makes it hard to sleep. What happened the last time you binged three hours of Grey’s Anatomy before bed? You couldn’t sleep. Try to avoid screen time for at least one hour before going to bed. The same goes for the morning. Screen time first thing in the morning isn’t great for you either, as it doesn’t set your day up for success. I find that when I don’t use my phone for the first hour of being awake, I’m more productive and less likely to get distracted throughout the day. Urgent messages that need a response are sometimes unavoidable, but try to check your emails on your laptop. Using your laptop instead of your smartphone will prevent you from going from one app to another. I also suggest not using social media until after you’ve completed your morning routine – don’t worry, the posts will still be there when you log on later.
4. Skipping class
Skipping your morning class, especially when the weather is gross, is tempting, but it’s a slippery slope. Once you’ve skipped one class, you’re more likely to skip more because you “didn’t miss anything last time”, “it’s too early” and honestly, “nobody goes anyway.” If you tend to skip your morning classes, I suggest picking courses that start later in the day and courses that don’t have classes on Fridays (three-day weekend!). Pro tip: try not to skip class at the end of the term, profs tend to mention important things and sometimes give hints for what’s on the final.
5. Impulse buying
I’m going to admit that I’m bad at this one. Spending money on things you don’t need is not only bad for your wallet but also for the planet and your overall well-being. Physical clutter causes mental clutter, which in turn affects your well-being. A clean, clutter-free space promotes relaxation and a clear mindset. Next time you find yourself making an impulse purchase ask yourself: “Is this a need or a want?”, “do I already have this?” and “is this worth the money?”
Next time you find yourself engaging in these bad habits, don’t fret! If it’s on the list, you’re not the only one with the habit. I hope these tips help you break these bad habits and improve your well-being. P.S.: These tips are versatile and can be used to combat other bad habits such as skipping breakfast. Not snoozing your alarm will give you more time in the morning and, therefore, more time for breakfast.
Headspace article: https://www.headspace.com/sleep/how-to-stop-snoozing