Winter, especially around the holidays, is considered the most wonderful time of the year. But when the days get colder and it starts getting dark out early, it’s easy to procrastinate doing school work because all you want to do is cuddle up under a blanket and watch movies. I’m sure we all know that feeling. Here are some tips, that I’ve personally found helpful, on how to stay motivated doing the wintertime.
Make a to-do list and prioritize the assignments you have listed. This is great because you can see, in a broad sense, everything you must do for the day and plan accordingly. Prioritizing is important because you’ll know what assignment to complete first, depending on their respective due dates.
Limit your distractions while doing an assignment and studying by turning your phone off or on do not disturb mode. Another thing you can do is download an app on your phone for locking your social media while you study as well as a website blocker on your computer. You can find some examples here: https://focusme.com/blog/5-simple-website-blockers-for-studying-and-increasing-productivity/. It’s tempting to scroll through your Instagram feed or watch stories on Snapchat, but you have to constantly remind yourself to be productive.
Take study breaks! I cannot stress this enough. A lot of people think that the only way you can study is if you cram all the information in your brain within hours. Studying for hours on end will do nothing but drive you crazy. Study breaks are vital, even if it’s just for 10 or 15 minutes. Just make sure the breaks don’t last too long, and you get back to studying and finishing what you have to get done.
Do some physical activity in the mornings. That doesn’t necessarily mean you have to go to the gym; there are many at-home workout tutorials on YouTube. Exercise is proven to make you happier and more energized, and that’s why we could all use it in our lives.
Reward yourself after finishing your work. You deserve it and you finally get to relax after putting in all the effort to do an assignment or studying for an exam. Rewards can range anywhere from treating yourself to food or binge-watching a show on Netflix. If you really can’t bring yourself to start an assignment, just think of how you’ll reward yourself after completing it and work towards that.
I hope you learned something from this post and that you can implement a few of these tips in your daily lives. Let’s all have a productive winter together!