PassionPlex

In college, you’re juggling twenty different things at the same time whether that be studying for your gruesome biology class or just trying to find an hour gap to have lunch with someone you want to become closer with. It’s hard. There’s always going to be that one area of your life that isn’t getting enough attention. It’s safe to say I’ve felt like this quite too often even though it is about to be my second month in college and this new chapter of my life. If I do say so myself, I’ve gotten better at the circus we call college. I’ve found ways that I can keep my cool and reduce my overall stress and I take immense pride in that. Here is my list of tips for when you just need a push towards productivity and how to make sure you maintain a healthy wellbeing while doing so.

1. Set daily goals that are realistic and achievable.

This is an important tip. To do this realistically, these goals need to be small and help build momentum for larger goals. Mark Murphy, author of the book, “Hard Goals: The Secret to Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be” wrote that with goals you should put your present cost into the future and the future will then benefit from the present. In other words, we must value the time in the present and achieve goals that we could do today, rather than putting off until tomorrow. Achieving these small goals will help us be more productive and give us further motivation when completed. This is very powerful. Completing one goal gives you fuel to keep going. This motivation improves performance and provides a level of meaningful satisfaction.

With this tip, you need to be committed. If you don’t channel your attention and focus into the task at hand, you most likely will not achieve it. This may lead to feelings of frustration and overall negativity. By creating and completing goals, you set out your intentions for the future and help yourself manage your time effectively. You can make purposeful decisions to better yourself and eliminate procrastination and feelings of overwhelm.

2. Reducing screen time.

This may sound incredibly redundant. I feel like I’m bombarded with these anti-screen time sentiments from my parents and doctors all the time. But, at the end of the day, even if we don’t want to admit it to ourselves, there are so many benefits that result from simply putting our phones down. In fact, there are just as many benefits as putting down your phone as there are eating vegetables.

You may often find yourself on your phone when you’re supposed to be studying. You even decided to go to an aesthetic library to motivate yourself. The problem is when you go on your phone, your attention floats elsewhere. Our brains cannot focus on multiple things at once and when you bring your phone in the picture, productivity declines. Attention span reduces. And you’ve done it. You’ve made yourself distracted. A study session that could have been a good hour has turned into three.

If you put your phone down, your brain can slow down. Your focus is recultivated onto a sole task. With no distractions, your attention span and patience are on the up and up. You’re going strong. You become less stressful and it’s easier for you to avoid burnout. Don’t worry, your phone will be there waiting for you when you’re done studying cellular respiration or integrals. Get off your phone and be productive. Tough love.

3. Journal Daily.

I think there is a common misconception with journaling. There’s this idea that you must write everything that you are thinking about onto paper. That’s not the case. You oversee your journaling. You can journal once a day or even once a month. It’s up to you. You can write down a to-do list or write about a positive lesson you learned that day. Again, it’s up to you. It’s your journal. Depending on how you use your journal, it can help you in so many ways and is so critical for self-care and being in touch with yourself.

Since I’ve started college, I’ve written three positive things down every night about my day. These are short but sweet sentences. This is positive self-talk. I’ve used this to communicate myself and it makes me think optimistically. I can be stressed out about making friends or worried about a test I had taken that day. Honestly, it could have just been a bad day. But, by doing this exercise, I’ve been able to find a meaningful and positive outlook. I really am able to put things into perspective and cope with my sometimes circus-like emotions.

Here are some introspective ideas for those who want to start journaling but don’t know where to start:

• Gratitude Journal: write about things you are thankful for
• Write about your strengths and how you can use them to your advantage.
• What has made today great/challenging?
• How Am I?
• What are three things that make me feel proud?
• What do I love most about myself?
• What are the values I live by?
• What are my current priorities?

4. Find an exercise routine that you enjoy

I’m going to start this tip off with a story. I’ve always loved science. Always. I take pride in being a science nerd. However, ever since I’ve started college, I really haven’t been doing well in my biology class. Maybe it’s a matter of not studying correctly or not giving myself enough time to study, but the truth remains. Yesterday, I got my bio quiz grade back and I bawled. Being a student at Vanderbilt, it’s safe to say that the feeling of academic failure is a bad one. My friend Jade proceeded to invite me to her orange theory class. “Trust me, Gabi. You need this.” I came out of the class with a bright red face, but I felt so relieved. I got out of my funk and was able to be more productive with my time. Sometimes you just need to sweat the BS out. Science nerd Gabi is going to tell you why.

By performing in physical activity, your body starts to release endorphins. This is going to be your strong boost of energy. Your fuel. Your power. By tapping into these chemical stores, you’re naturally happier and more productive. Endorphins are attached to your brain’s reward centers. They make you feel good and give you a more positive outlook. A meta-analysis found that exercising for about 10-15 minutes a day for three days a week shows reductions in anxiety and depression levels (Guszkowska, 2004). So, my point is. Take a step back from the stress. Find a type of exercise that you enjoy doing whether that be pilates, a good run, or a yoga class. You’ll start to feel more in control, and you’ll feel more ready to conquer your day.

5. Make the unconscious conscious.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always had lists of goals for myself. Don’t compare yourself to others. Exercise to have a sick body. Don’t hold grudges. And the list goes on. So, if you are reading this, this is your official sign to stop making excuses. From now on, you are making your list of goals a reality. This is day one of the new you.

I’m sure we all have photos of Pinterest quotes that just resonate so loud in your head. The ones that make you feel understood. That one simple sentiment has so much power. But does it? Maybe for that one day. But then we forget. We forget that effect it had and how it made us feel. It spoke to our unconscious mind: our dreams and our visions for ourselves.

As cheesy as it sounds, we all have such huge potential to do amazing things. Let’s break the habit of making excuses for ourselves and bring our unconscious ideas to conscious action. Picture those Pinterest quotes in your head as you visualize what you want your life to look like. I’ve realized that when I fulfill my goals or little tasks, I feel so much more productive and therefore so much better about myself. We’re stuck in this bad habit where we want to accomplish these things but don’t make the effort to do so. By making our unconscious mind our conscious mind, we become more empowered to take control of our goals. We become more aware and can dig into those visions in our unconscious mind. We can reprogram ourselves to make meaningful change in the form of positive wellbeing and productivity in our daily lives.