Originally published on December 5, 2016
It’s that time of year again, and the last thing any of us
want to do is schoolwork. But we have to. This week is the last week of
classes, when our final papers are due, when we have our presentations, when we
start to review for finals which are our only barrier towards a month of
freedom. I could make a list of things I’d rather be doing, or supply a page of
GIFs describing my feelings. Instead, I’m writing a pep talk, because I need
one right about now and you probably do too.
“You can do anything in short term.” I quote my mom a lot on
here, and this article is no exception. That’s become my mantra as of late. There
are days I’m at school for over twelve hours, having any combination of quizzes
and tests and presentations and performances in addition to the regular
classwork, the practice regimen, work, and tutoring. That’s only happened a
couple of times so far. Those days are about to become nearly every day. Everything
you do is pushing towards that end goal of winter break. It’s only two weeks
away. Compared to the rest of your life, that’s nothing. Two weeks, and it will
be over. Short term. Get your studying done, be proud of whatever final
products you put forth. Succeed, and then you can make up for all that lost
sleep.
Make a studying schedule now. Figure out when your finals
are and how much material you need to cover. Find a tutor or schedule a meeting
with a professor if something isn’t making sense. Do it now so that on the
final you don’t turn to the first question and find out it’s that one thing you
forgot to study. Have goals for each day in mind so that you aren’t just
staring at a textbook for hours on end, remembering nothing the next day. Use
timers, take breaks. Hopefully by now you know what method of studying works
best for you. Remember to eat and sleep. Whatever tasks you have yet to
accomplish will seem so much smaller once you break them up and lay them out in
front of you.
Persevere. That’s my new buzzword. There will be another
article about this more specifically, but in the face of finals week it is so,
so relevant. Don’t burn out halfway through because you feel like you failed
your first final. It’s over, there’s nothing you can do about it, so just pour
that much more energy into the next one. The finish line is in sight. It’s true
that time will continue, no matter how you use it, but doesn’t it make sense to
make the most out of it? If you treat school like your job, and your grades
like a paycheck, wouldn’t you want to get as much out of it as possible? Is one
class troubling you? There’s only two weeks left; then you might never have to
think about material or see that professor again.
Finally, believe in yourself. You’ve gotten this far through
college. You’ve survived; you’ve gotten through every other obstacle thrown
your way. You only have to go through this twice a year. You can do it!
Good luck, everyone. Get your head in your notes and I’ll
see you when it’s over!
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