So, the end of the spring semester is coming up in about 2-3 weeks. I'm sure a lot of us had a pretty rough semester, as all spring semesters go. Its the final weeks and you can't let your guard down! Some of us may need to step it up in these last few weeks. Whether you are rocking this semester or rolling downhill, here are 12 ways you can not only be more productive, but improve your life:
1. SLEEP!
I can't stress just how important sleep is in your life! Now, some of us have jobs that don't allow us to get the sleep we need and in that case, I would say try finding a job that better suits your class schedule. If you can't, then get at least six hours and nothing less. According to a Standford report, college students need more than eight hours, but it's unlikely that we will get the sleep we need specific to our bodies. The best thing to do is to always shoot for that golden eight-hour mark during the weekdays and try to sleep in an extra hour or two on the weekend. Sleeping will help with everything from cognition, to acne treatment, and even maintaining a healthy weight.
2. Put down that soda!
I LOVE Coca-Cola, which is a HUGE problem because it's probably the worst thing you could put into your body that is manufactured to be put into your body. Soda has WAY too much sugar in it and some sodas can lead to your teeth literally deteriorating away. Not cavities, no there are some sodas that just make your teeth dissolve over time. Obviously, we all know sodas can lead to obesity, but drinking soda actually affects one's sleeping habits. Caffeine takes 45 minutes to give us the "high" and takes anywhere from 4-6 hours to leave our system, according to an article by Caffeine Informer. So based on this, you should stop drinking anything caffeinated eight hours before bedtime for good measure. Putting down the soda will detox your body, help clear acne problems, help lose weight, get a better night's sleep, and just live a healthier and happier life.
3. Stop it with the coffee madness.
We need to have a talk. Coffee does some pretty good things to your body. Excess sugar, milk, etc does not. According to a fantastic statistics website, Statistic Brain, they claimed that, in 2016, 65% of people added cream or sugar to their coffee. When you add all of this sugar and cream, you are making it no better than the soda you shouldn't drink. This especially applies to Coffee-Mate creamer; another great website called Is It Bad For You gave them an "F" rating. You can read the article here. Also if you're drinking tons of cups of coffee a day, then you're adding way too much caffeine into your system. Somewhere between one-two cups of coffee (with a healthy additive such as Almond Milk), a day is probably all your body needs. And, while we are on the topic of coffee, those specialty drinks (mocha lattes, etc) are so sugary that I'm not sure just how much coffee is in there. It's more like drinking a shake.
The coffee statistics can be found here.
4. Drink tea.
Tea is awesome! It's got caffeine in some forms and in others it has AMAZING health benefits. Plus, the caffeine found in black tea is still not as much as coffee or soda. Add just a little sugar and you are good to go. I personally drink decaffeinated green tea with honey and lemon juice in the morning to kick my metabolism into gear and then an 8oz cup of English or Irish breakfast tea with two teaspoons of sugar around 3 to get over the afternoon hump. And yes, I do end up in bed by 11. This equals to about 8 grams of sugar and if you're like me and this is the only sugar drink you have, then that's not bad.
5. Use the Pomodoro method.
There's a fantastic method called the Pomodoro method and you can use an app called "Focus Keeper" on the iPhone to help you with it. The basic concept is that you do 25 minutes of work and then a 5-minute break. After you repeat this four times you get a 25-minute break and that's one Pomodoro. It's a great way to keep you on task because a lot of us like to keep doing a task and not stop until we finish. The problem with this is that you burn yourself out and about midway through you usually get tired of having to learn more information. If we take a quick step back from what we are doing we can come back to it with a clear mind.
6. Get a website blocker.
You can't focus on homework, can you? Probably because you are on a laptop and all you want to do is tune into Netflix. Stop it with the Netflix. Netflix, Hulu, and Television are all the road to procrastination. The same goes for social media sites such as Facebook. I suggest downloading Google Chrome, getting a website blocker extension, and stop yourself from going to these sites. The extension makes it tedious to turn off so you won't be tempted to try and constantly add and remove websites.
7. Start the day with meditation and a brain puzzle.
So, I've talked about the body a lot, but what about the mind? We need to get our minds going, so I suggest waking up, washing your face, meditating for five minutes using the app "Simple Habit" and then doing some brain puzzles. Meditation can actually help out a whole lot with stress and just giving the day a fresh start. As for puzzles, I play 1-2 games of sudoku in the morning, but you can do anything from crossword puzzles to some apps like "Elevate". Don't be a zombie in your 8:00 am class, show up with your mind already thinking critically.
8. Have goals.
Each day you should develop some goals for yourself. I'm a book nerd and like to follow the Alice in Wonderland six impossible things idea. So, I set about six goals each day to complete. Setting goals helps you stay focused, determined, and feels good to get things done.
9. Set your phone on 'Do Not Disturb'.
From 1 hour before bedtime until 1 hour after bedtime set your phone on "do not disturb". In general, you should just stop using electronics or anything that emits a lot of light 1 hour before bed. So, at the end of the day, get your final texts out, go through your email, and leave the rest for tomorrow
10. Learn when to stop.
Some of us don't like stopping; we have to keep going and going. But like I said before, we need to learn when to stop. We won't finish every little thing in one day and that's okay. Learning when to say, "I'm done for today and will come back tomorrow", can really help with anxiety. Just don't turn this into a procrastination moment.
11. Listen to Classical music when doing homework/studying.
I know everyone has a preference of music when learning, but listening to classical music, such as Mozart, has been proven to be the most beneficial. Howtolearn.com wrote a summary of Standford University's study called "The Mozart Effect". They reported that listening to classical music "can relieve stress, improve communication, and increase efficiency". You're more likely to be more productive listening to this versus anything else, especially music that has a native language. So, if you are American and speak English, then music using American English will distract you because you are more likely to follow along with the words rather than with your textbook.
12. Discover new ideas.
You should always seek new ideas in media. Listen to some podcasts about anything, I am currently subscribed to 15 podcasts which keep me from watching too much television, plus I get to explore new ideas. Among these 15, you should check out: The Minimalists Podcast,TED Radio Hour, Happier with Gretchen Rubin, and Backseat Rider. Maybe you should watch a TED Talk, some documentaries, or I highly suggest reading at least 1 book each semester. I don't go beyond one book in this article because the demands each semester brings varies per person. Just remember, don't let these sources turn into the next Netflix binge-like problem for you.
There is so much more I could put on here, but this will get you started. Now, go finish off this semester like a champ.
