Second Semester Prep: Let’s Do This!
Second semester of college what the heck. I know for many people the first day back was today. My first day of class is Wednesday, but I came back to Chapel Hill on Monday. So many emotions and thoughts swirl around the air and bounce around in our brains. This post is about what I’m doing to set myself up for success and settle the craziness.
First off, I think it’s important to write down or talk about your feelings even if you don’t feel stressed or nervous or even excited. Just get it out in the air and come to terms with it. I am feeling all the emotions. Excited, nervous, sad, happy, etc. Everyone will react differently. Many will think negatively about school. Can you find a way to make it positive? My view is that we are going to school and work regardless of what we want so we might as well have a good attitude about it. Smile and find joy in whatever you can. I swear by romanticizing your life. To me this means getting excited about the little things like your morning coffee, your favorite song, etc. If something is joyful, notice it. It seems simple, but joy can be overlooked in the moment. This may sound silly, but think of yourself in a movie. Imagine the person you want to be and seek that out.
I always like to get a good workout in the day before and day of the first day of school. It preps mind, body, and brain. I like to add in yoga and meditation, as well, to calm my nerves. Usually, I will do a strength/HIIT workout to feel into my power and realize how capable I am. The contrast of the power and the peace is my favorite way to workout because that is how I want to live my life.
Reflection, visualization, and action. Those are my key words. Reflect on your past actions, visualize your future, and act in accordance with what you want and don’t want. With these it is important to be mindful. We often go through life on autopilot, try to feel into the present moment and be aware. Awareness and mindfulness, intertwined in one bundle of success and happiness.
My agenda and my journal are my most helpful tools for these concepts. I can write down past, present, and future. My goal is that once I write down my plan for the day, I want to use it as just that: a plan. It is penciled in and it doesn’t need to be perfect. I don’t need to control things that cannot be controlled and I don’t need to keep going over my schedule in my head. One thing I realized is that by constantly thinking about my day, not only was I not in the present moment, but I was using so much energy on worry. Thinking about how much of my precious energy was soaked up by the sponge of worry inspires me to let go just a little bit more.
Reflection helps to find the root cause of our emotions. Why we feel the way we do and how it can be rectified or continued.
Of course I had to make a few To-do lists because I don’t know what I would do without them. I like to visualize the things I want/need to get down before the first day in order to feel my best and most prepared. I wrote an overall list and then broke it down into the 1.5ish days I have.
I slowly start to add in more work day by day so it isn’t a shock when I go back. It is important to grant yourself always, but even more so in the first week back. You may be more fatigued, less motivated, more motivated, whatever it may be. No judgement. Just as is done in yoga, notice thoughts without labels or judgement and simply let them float by. Embrace where you are in this moment and do your best.
Think of your goals and how you will apply them during the rest of school. My view is that if you don’t visualize how your goals will fit into your life, nothing will become of them. Goals are great, but they are nothing without action and the step before action is visualization.
Go slow and steady. No need to do everything all at once and overwhelm yourself. Take it as you can handle it. Don’t be scared, be ready, and if you aren’t ready that’s ok just get yourself on the path to being ready.
This last week I started getting a bit prepared by emailing professors and my bosses, looking at my schedule and planning out my days, buying school supplies, starting any classes, etc.
To plan my days I made a 5-fold piece of paper for the work week. I wanted to make sure yoga, meditation, journaling, self affirmations, tutoring, teaching, and office hours were incorporated. It is not a set in stone schedule, but it gives me a good idea of what I have to do each day and what openings I have.
Here is what it looks like:
Here’s what I did Monday and Tuesday: I decided to keep it a bit of a looser schedule because I didn’t know what might get in the way or how my energy levels would be.
Monday:
9:45-11:40 flight
Begin blog post on the plane
Walk to Cava and eat lunch
Shop at Whole Foods, Trader Joes, and Staples
Walk back
Unpack
Nap
Call friends
Dinner with suite mates
Catch up
I made my shopping lists:
Whole Foods: breakfast foods, Fro Pros?, turkey sticks
Trader Joes: breakfast foods, barebells
Staples: Notebooks, colored pencils, markers, paper
I really worked to follow my intuition on Monday. I was going to workout, but the 5 mile walk tired me out and I was ready for a nap. I knew I was going to have to wake up early on Tuesday to teach my class and I didn’t want to start the semester exhausted.
Tuesday:
6:20 wake up
7:30-8:30 teach yoga
Coffee and shopping with my suite mates
Lunch
Put away the rest of my clothes and clean
1-2 work call
Finalize blog
Plan my day tomorrow and sign up for my boxing class
More organizing, cleaning, and calling friends
Look over syllabus
Go to target for school supplies
Economics work
6-7 yoga class
Dinner
Shower
Plan out my outfit and pack up my bag
Journal, meditate, read
I planned out my Wednesday and here is the goal. I am trying to be less strict with my routines because things come up and that’s ok.
FIRST DAY OF CLASS LETS GO!!!
6 am wake up, get ready, make bed, positive affirmations, hype music, eat broke
6:40-8:10ish workout + yoga
Shower, meditate, get ready
8:45 leave
9:05-9:55 class
10:10-11 class
11:15-12:05 class
Lunch with the girls
Homework
Leave at 3:30 for boxing
4:30-5:30 box
8:30-9:30 hockey practice
Go out
Let’s make it an incredible semester!!