As the school year comes to an end and everyone is rushing to retest and turn in their final assignments, we often forget to take care of our mental health, figuring it’s just one more month and then we’re done. While this mentality is understandable, it’s also a part of the toxic productivity that we as a society have inflicted upon ourselves. Yes, get that assignment done and do your best, but also make sure you take at least a bit of time to do something you enjoy every day. Here are some tips to get you through the rest of the school year.
- It’s okay to have days in which your only goal is to make it through the day. Don’t take them super often, but when you come into school and you’re feeling absolutely miserable and unproductive, take it easy and just try to finish each class.
- Pace yourself. It’s not always easy or convenient, but try to sit down at some point in the week and make a plan for when you’re going to do what. This will ensure that you finish things on time without burning yourself out, plus you get the satisfaction of crossing things off.
- Have some sort of reward system. For some, having some sort of drink or a small snack they like makes things more tolerable. For others, they find the routine of finishing something and then treating themself to be preferable. When choosing how to reward yourself, though, don’t get hung up on whether or not you “deserve” it. The point is to give yourself something pleasurable when cranking out work, not to determine your worthiness.
- Make at least fifteen minutes of your day socializing. When we bury ourselves in our work, we tend to forget about our social needs. This may not apply to all, but lack of socialization can really wear someone down and make them feel a bit depressed. Take some time to have an actual conversation with someone, not just joke with them before class.
Hopefully, some of these tips can help make the rest of your school year a bit more bearable, but not everything works for everyone. Try to figure out what works for you and stick to it. We can do it!