That period of time between Thanksgiving Break and Winter Break is one of the biggest hurdles of the academic year. You get to indulge in a dose of the holidays for just a bit until you are very quickly pulled away and dropped right back in school for another few weeks. This wouldn’t be so bad if Winter Break wasn’t right around the corner waiting for you at the finish line. So how does one stay focused during this odd portion of the semester?
The overlapping buzz of the recent holiday combined with the anxious anticipation of the coming one makes it difficult to think about anything else but food, family, and presents. Although it may be tempting to release yourself from putting any real effort toward schoolwork during this time, final exams are nearing and your mind must stay focused. Other than just pushing yourself to stay strong and remembering that only a few weeks stand between you and that month-long break, there are some other things you can do to make yourself feel better as well. Try out some of the following ideas to prevent any holiday slacking.
Eat healthy: You’ll have plenty of time to gorge on turkey, cookies, and tons of other delicious yet fattening foods once the next batch of the holiday season finally arrives. For now, save yourself that guilt of eating poorly and take care of your body. Aside from the fact that you’re just being good to yourself, healthy foods are proven to improve brain function and keep you in a good state to produce great work. Keeping yourself on a stable and well-balanced diet will keep you energized and running well during this antsy time. You may want to take a look at this information on healthier school lunches.
Limit gift shopping to the weekends: It’s natural to want to get your gift shopping out of the way as early as possible. However, most of us end up procrastinating this effort and end up leaning to use this time period to get it done. If this is the situation you find yourself in, do your absolute best to keep this shopping within the weekends only. If you are done with classes for the day and decide to stop by a few stores on the way home, you’re going to get distracted with holiday cheer and overly-involved in the process. Before you know it, this will be the only thing taking over your mind for the rest of the day leaving no time for studying. You can only afford to lose so many study days during this brief time before final exams. Separate your academic life from the shopping and/or brainstorming of what presents to buy. In the end, this will allow both endeavors to bring up better results. Here is a great list of three things to not do while you are studying that may help you when it comes to finals time.
Switch up your routine: As much as you can, try to alter the way you go about your days. Obviously this is not the time to try out new recreational things – after all, the point of this is to stay focused on your schoolwork. But you can change some of the details surrounding your work-producing schedule. For instance, sit in a different area of the library, go to a different coffee shop, listen to different music, etc. If you do the same thing every single day, it’ll be no wonder that you’re getting restless and unable to detach yourself from the holidays. Changing things up a bit will keep you from getting bored and make the time go by quicker as you stay focused. Here is some great information on why extracurriculars boost college success that you may want to take a look at as well.
Clean your room: This is probably advice you hear often, but it really rings true during this time. Eliminating clutter and getting organized can make your days of studying a lot more tolerable. You can be certain that you’ll focus better if you don’t have a mess distracting you. Additionally, you’ll be all set to pack away those presents you receive later on without having to worry about making room in the midst of such chaos.
Establish a support system: Whether it be friends, family, or classmates, try to get a group of people to fall back on when you find yourself getting distracted and aimless in your work. Everybody around you has jobs to do before the core of the holiday season emerges, so come together to fight the distractions and accomplish your goals successfully. It is always easier to reach your objectives when you have the reassurance of others going after similar feats as well. Knowing you’re not alone in the journey can keep you up and alert for as long as you need. Use each other to maintain balance through these last few weeks.
When it all comes to down to it, you know you will be rewarded with a marvelous break very soon. Give yourself even more reason to enjoy that break by feeling proud of yourself for the work you accomplished. Go into the rest of the holiday season stress-free and ready to enjoy. Prove to yourself now that you’ll deserve it later on.
