One Last Push
Happy belated Thanksgiving!! We are now entering the busy period of time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. A lot of us are stressed, anxious, and burnt out with little to no motivation left. Some of us had restful Thanksgiving breaks. Either way, we just have one last push. I wanted to write a post about my tips for having a great few weeks before Christmas filled with motivation, energy, and excitement as we come into our full power and capability.
We have the choice to make this period of time miserable or powerful. Let’s choose powerful. Yes it is going to be hard. There is no question about that, but you can do it. You are capable. When you feel like you can’t, know that you can. Anytime during these few weeks when you start to doubt if you can make it through the hardship, know that you can and you will be stronger on the other side. You may have to dig deep into your energy reserves, but they are there.
So… the first step in this last push is changing your mindset and understanding you can do it. Next, make a plan. Start to get back into reality, slowly. Map out any work, tests, exams, due dates, etc. Plan out when you will do what assignments, but also when you can relax and have fun. It can’t be all work and no play or we will burn out (trust me I would know lol). I have around three weeks of school left until I am on break which isn’t long, but it will be a lot of work so I have to intertwine work with me time. “Me time” is important and you need to treat it as such.
Starting is the hardest part, and the only way to get it done is by ripping off the bandaid. 1,2,3.. go! Most of the time it isn’t as bad as you think it is.
Make it as fun as possible. Change up your routine if it starts to get boring. Surround yourself with friends and family, I promise it makes a big difference. Use your friends as motivation, push each other and make each other better. Know what is productive for you. Sometimes studying with friends is productive, even if it is productive in a different way. Filling up your cup, being with friends, laughing, that is productive. Other times you might need to grind and you need to be honest with yourself: should you study alone or with friends?
The power of engagement is a strong force. When you are doing something be fully engaged. If you are doing homework, do it and be focused. Try to be interested and learn. Knowledge is a beautiful thing, remind yourself of that. For the class or tasks that you can’t even force yourself to be interested in (I get it), think of how amazing it will be to check that off your list of to-dos.
Focus on one thing at a time. I say this a lot, but looking too far ahead can be extremely overwhelming. Even thinking about your whole day all at once can be too much. Make your plan and then break each piece of your day down into digestible pieces.
Make this your time to shine. You are going to come out so strong on the other side. I like to create a healthy and balanced schedule. This is different for everyone. For me, this looks like waking up at 6:30 to get a workout in, do a little yoga, meditation, positive affirmations, and then get into my day. I have been slacking on meditation and positive affirmations because my mind starts to think about my to-do list. I know how important meditation and affirmations are for me so I am going to put them on my to-do list and make them just as important as any other task for the day.
Let productivity excite you, don’t allow it to scare you. You own the power over your day, don’t let it be the other way around. It is so fun to see how much you can push yourself and realize that you are able to do a lot more than you thought you could. This applies to work, workouts, and whatever goals you may have.
I want these few weeks to be like a reset. We always think of breaks as our reset, but we can reset during the work too. I want to enjoy my workouts even when they are early, be ready to work, eat healthy, but include balance. The Era of Us is continuing and it is time to really emphasize it. When life gets hard let’s push harder. Tune into you. Confront everything with full force and go kill it. Along the way, things may knock you down, but they will never knock you out.
I also like to plan fun little adventures or activities to look forward to. It’s holiday time!! I am planning on doing a full day of Christmas activities and decorating my dorm room with my roommate. We are going to get a mini Christmas tree, holiday candles, watch Christmas movies. The holiday season is the perfect time for work and fun. There are so many holiday activities to use as rewards. Use rewards as a way to keep your motivation and excitement going. Tell yourself if you study for x amount of time or do x amount of assignments you can go to Starbucks and get a holiday drink or go shopping.
Take breaks, but intentional breaks. When you are studying, put your phone all the way away. Turn it on do not disturb and lock in. Set a time a start and end time for your break if you have to. It is easy to go down the TikTok rabbit-hole, so you might chose to not use social media until after you are all the way done for the day. I love using meals with friends as breaks or even just having five minute conversations with people before getting back to work. Don’t let yourself sit in your room or chair or library all day, get up, go outside, soak in the sunshine, move around.
Let’s do this!!!