Okay before anything else, I would like to clarify that these tips help me. These are techniques that work for me. If they don’t work for you or they’re not your style, then don’t fret! (That doesn’t in any way imply that you can’t get your life together.) If you find that these tips aren’t for you, don’t force yourself to follow them! These are just gentle suggestions that you may or may not try out! I hope you guys enjoy!
What’s this post about?
Sometimes we just reach that point in our daily living where we’re so overwhelmed by almost everything that we don’t really know where to start or what to do. In this post, I just wanna give some suggestions that might help you sort out the things you need to do! There’ll also be some handy links at the end of the post!
1. Tie your hair and put on a new shirt.
You will feel much much much better after fixing up your hair and putting on something fresh. No, it won’t clear the skies or feed all of Africa, but it will set an “I can accomplish a lot” mood. You’ll be at your most productive state if you just feel good in general. And if not good, at least fresh. Wash your face, comb your hair, brush your teeth, drink water, etc. TAKE A SHOWER. Wash away the stress and scrub the burdens off your shoulder. You’ll feel really motivated to get down to work, believe me.
2. Clean your room.
Now that your freshening up has (hopefully) motivated you to get some stuff done, straighten up your room or study/work space. Your environment has a direct effect on your productivity according to several studies and articles like this one. If you work in an organized and clean area, your productivity levels will surely go up! Really take the time to go through your old belongings. Put everything in its proper place. Get rid of old clothes that you don’t wear anymore (honey, if you haven’t worn it in 6 months, you’re never gonna wear it). Make sure also that you maintain it (easier said than done, I know). Cleaning your room will also help you gradually get into a working mood, so it’ll be easier for you to start working on other tasks.
TIP: Play some fun and peppy music while you’re cleaning your room for an extra mood boost.
3. Write out everything in your mind.
Sit down and get comfy. Pull out any piece of paper, can be anything from an old receipt to your favorite stationery pad. Now write. Write down…
everything you have to do urgently, in the near future, in the far future. > e.g. finish an assignment, set up an appointment with the dentist, get into college/find a job
anything that’s bothering you or lingering in your mind > e.g. how your crush just followed you back on twitter, how scary it is to send an email to adults
things that you absolutely cannot forget > e.g. return that library book, friend’s bday is coming up soon (gotta get a gift!), there’s an important test coming up
thoughts, feelings, opinions, irrelevant things > e.g. school’s tiring you out, politics are driving you nuts, the stray cat on your road seems kinda hungry today
JUST WRITE THEM ALL. In my opinion, it’s better to have your thoughts all laid out visible on paper rather than having them swimming in and out of your mind. Once they’re on paper, you can let your mind rest a bit from holding in so much information. Don’t write your thoughts in any particular order. Just write your ideas as they pop into your head. It may seem unsystematic for some of you, but just wait until the next point!
4. Organize your mind.
Now get a clean sheet of paper and organize your thoughts—tasks, dates, ideas/opinions, misc.
Tasks: Hopefully you’ve heard of the Eisenhower Box. If not, do not fear, for I will explain it!
So make this nifty table on your new sheet of paper, and organize your tasks accordingly! But first, expand. If you have quite abstract tasks like “get into college” break these tasks into smaller tasks like “review for entrance exams” or “fill out application,” and then classify those tasks into the table.
after categorizing your tasks, make a to-do list! (There are many ways to make a to-do list. What I usually do is start with the easy/fun tasks first then list the more challenging/time-consuming ones last. However, this is up to you! Explore what works for you.)
Dates: Have you considered investing on those really big wall calendars? You should!! Get a big wall calendar and hang it up in your room so you can see it every morning and every night. Fill in the dates with appointments, test days, deadlines, birthdays, and anything else! Having a calendar will help you visualize how much time you have left before a certain event. If you can’t get a calendar, other alternatives include a planner, your phone calendar, and/or an online calendar (like Google calendar).
Ideas/Opinions: I’d recommend using a journal (traditional or digital) to keep a record of your thoughts! It’s very good to clear your mind of these if you wanna delegate more of your thinking powers on another task. You can also talk to other people! Maybe you’ve been really bothered by something happening in your life that you really wanna let out. Look for trustworthy companions that you can confide in. After a long hearty talk, you’ll be ready to conquer the day once again!
Misc: Anything else that hasn’t been covered in the previous categories can be written here. It’ll be for you to decide how to proceed with these notes.
Other Resources: Check out these other links/masterposts for more tips on how to get your life together! (highly recommended links are italicized)
And of course, don’t push yourself. If you need to take a break, go! Sleep. Reenergize your body. This period won’t last forever, and one day you’ll find yourself laughing at this actually short amount of time where you were stressing over the world’s end. Trust me.
I’ve resolved that every Wednesday, I will write a masterpost about self care and living clean and happy lifestyles. Mainly because my blog is devoted to that too, besides being a studyblr, but I hardly ever post original content about it, so hereeee we go. 🙂
Plan first
Make a list of areas you want to tackle
Or items you want to go through
Set how long you’ll clean
And a little reward for yourself when you’ve reached that goal
Envision what you want your space to look like at the end
Set aside three baskets or areas: one for things to keep, one for things to trash, and one for things to donate/sell
House
There are just some ideas of things to get rid of or pare down. Feel free to add your own. 🙂
Bedroom
unnecessary pillows on your bed or extra blankets
monsters under your bed
chargers, wires, etc. that go to devices you don’t have anymore or that are broken
old devices, phones, ipods
books you felt kinda eh about while reading them
copies of books or CDs
old notebooks
sticky notes that have lost their stickiness
broken pencils
markers that have dried up
any art supply you don’t use
scrap paper that’s gotten too small
scrap yarn that’s gotten too small
old art projects
unfinished art projects
papers
candles w/o any smell
Scentsy-type stuff w/o any smell
Closet
clothes that don’t fit
all of those clothes you save for your “ugly days”
shoes that hurt that you don’t even like the looks of
underwear with holes (or blood stains – ya feel me, girls?)
socks without a matching pair
socks with holes
bras that are even looking tired
copies of clothes, like multiple white t-shirts
jewelry you don’t wear
childish jewelry
broken jewelry
Bathroom
hygiene products past their expiration date
faded towels
bottles with only a few drops of product left
worn out toothbrushes
hairbands that have lost their elasticity
congealed nail polish
makeup you regret buying
Digital Life
Social Media
Unfollow people, be merciless, make your social media a place of positivity
unfriend toxic people (see the next section)
go through your own posts and delete anything you regret posting
take social media breaks
Computer
upload all of your photos to Google photos or flickr or photobucket or onedrive or whatever, or even a CD, then delete them from your memory
also back up important documents or just things you want to keep to something else and delete them on your computer
go through and sort everything into files
delete any programs you don’t use
Phone
clean out your pictures, upload them to cloud or whatever
delete all of the apps you don’t use or need
go through your contacts and delete the people you don’t want to contact anymore
delete old text message conversations
give yourself a new background too, something clean and simple
Relationships
Get rid of those people who are toxic in your life, mute notifications from them, unfollow them on social media (you can unfollow someone one facebook without unfriending them), don’t answer them often
make an effort to interact with people face-to-face rather than through text or the internet
decide who you want to actively invest your energy in
School
make a study schedule
prioritize your schedule – study the hardest subjects the most
remember that grades are important
also remember that grades aren’t everything
(pls don’t fire me from being a studyblr)
if you can’t get everything you need to do done in 24 hours without sacrificing 8 hours of sleep and a bit of time for yourself, then you’re doing too much
Would you prefer waking up at 7:50 than at 7? Or maybe you’re a Tired College Student™ like me who’s in their second semester just waiting for the sweet release of death? Either way, today I’m going to be v non-studyblr and show you how you too can be a lazy asshole and sleep in.
Lay out your clothes the night before. If you feel like trash sweater + leggins takes 2 mins to put on and feels like PJs
If you shower at night just sleep in your leggins tbh.
If you have bangs do them the night before and sleep on your back. If you can’t keep still, wear headphones bc they’ll keep you from turning. It’s better for your back anyway.
Brush your hair before bed and tie it up so that it’s faster to brush in the morning.
Tbh smoothing the ends and the top layer works just as well.
Get a Tangle Teezer. It’ll save you so much time.
If you plan on using dry shampoo, do It the night before. It’ll absorb way more oil and you just have to brush it and go in the morning.
If you wear makeup, have all your basics in one easy to reach place.
If you take the bus or sth just do your makeup there.
If you need to wet your beauty blender, carry a mini spray bottle of water in your makeup bag.
Carry rollerballs of perfume in your backpack so that you don’t have to waste time putting it on.
Have your fucking backpack ready the night before.
Have a designated place near the door for the shit you need to carry (keys, glasses, USBs, idk). If you know what shoes you’re gonna wear, put them in front of the door and leave everything you need inside of them.
Putting on a coat is faster if it’s hung on a chair than if it’s hung on a hanger.
Breakfast is essential. Doesn’t mean you can’t just take it with you and eat it during break or on your way to school.
Make it the night before and put it in the fridge if it’’s temperature sensitive. Avocado toast can be turned into a mess free sandwich js. Also you can make overnight oats in a mason jar and take them with you.
Same with coffee. Honestly at this point just carry a bottle of it in your backpack. It lasts for like three days.
And that’s how to be a Slightly More Rested Mess. I realize this is not for everyone but hey, desperate times call for desperate meassures.
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