We aren’t even two months into school
Senioritis – a decline in motivation in the final year of school. For most people, senioritis starts to hit around spring semester, when you can feel graduation getting closer. Unfortunately, it started to hit me during the second week of school. This is difficult because I experience a decline in motivation every school year as the weather changes and gets colder. Here are a few things I have been trying to do to combat this feeling in order to make the most of my last year on campus and not fall behind in school.
1. Give myself grace
The first thing I had to realize was that it’s okay to no longer be as excited about school as I once was. I’m currently in my 17th year of education, and that’s kind of unbelievable! It’s okay to feel burnt out and to rest. It’s also okay to prioritize time with friends and family over school once in a while. I don’t know where I’ll be next year, or where any of my roommates and college friends will end up, so I’m trying to soak up as much time with them as possible before we go our separate ways.
2. Change up my study spots and schedule
While some people thrive off of a set schedule to follow every day, I don’t do well with that structure. My brain gets bored, distracted and tired of doing the same thing every day. I have also exhausted every popular study spot on campus within the last four years. My brain now associates places like Memorial Library, College Library, the Student Activity Center, and many other spots with hunkering down to do schoolwork for hours, so I don’t really like going to those places anymore. I have been exploring new buildings and finding little tables and nooks in different areas of campus. This helps me get my work done so that I don’t get burnt out as quickly, overcoming my brain’s association with schoolwork and study locations. I have also been trying to get my work done throughout the day, like cranking out a quick discussion post or paragraph of a paper in between classes so that I don’t have as much to do at the end of the day when I’m most tired.
3. Remind myself it’s ok to not have perfect grades
One of the most frustrating things about experiencing senioritis is the battle between wanting to rest and being burnt out, while also wanting straight As. While GPA matters for some life paths, it also can be something that loses a lot of meaning once you step out of this stage of life. While I’m still trying my best on each and every assignment, I remind myself that if I don’t do well on an exam because I didn’t study enough, that’s okay. This can be a tough line to walk sometimes, because it requires not letting things slip too much, but accepting that getting a few Bs will not be the end of the world.
4. Prioritizing sleep and fueling my body
You know what makes school a lot harder? Being tired and hungry. I have been trying to do little things within my control, like making sure I’m getting enough fruits and veggies, as well as at least 7 hours of sleep every night. I do this to make sure that my lack of motivation isn’t coming from a lack of nutrients and rest. I also found out that I have low iron, which can lead to fatigue and generally makes it harder to do a lot of everyday tasks, so taking supplements that fuel you can be important as well.
Overall, senioritis has already started to get me, but I have been trying to combat the negative feelings surrounding this phenomenon by doing what is best for me and remembering to not be too harsh on myself. Some days I just do what I can. This can look like a really productive study session in a new spot I find on campus, and other days it means getting 30 minutes of homework done and watching Bachelor in Paradise with my roommates. School does not define your worth. Remembering this is what will carry me through not only this semester, but spring semester too, all the way until graduation in May 2023 (only 212 days from the day I’m writing this, but who’s counting).