For Those Of You Starting College Soon:

All of my creature comforts are back from their long voyage across the ocean so naturally the first thing I did was reread Pride and Prejudice while eating breakfast and taking a bubble bath. You know, just to get it all out of my system at once.

so i finished my first year of college last month and thought i’d share things i learned and advice on entering and starting your first year 

keep a planner

take advantage of student id discounts

try to go to class as much as possible

in cases that you don’t go, make sure you have a friend, or at least someone who will fill you in and give you notes, in each class

network as soon as you can and as often as you can

wait a week or two until you purchase your textbooks, people aren’t lying to you, they’re expensive as fuuuccckkk, you’ll want to wait for multiple reasons because in some cases you never even end up using the book, or your library has it and you can just borrow it for free

wear flip flops in the shower if you don’t have your own bathroom

speaking of, go to the bathroom before class

set multiple alarms

take advantage of as many opportunities that come your way as possible

MAKE CONNECTIONS

have a very, very open mind

watch your drink

watch your friend’s drinks too

never, ever, ever, ever, ever, under ANY circumstances, drive while intoxicated or get into a car with a driver who is 

get to know your professors

do the extra credit, it’s rare

back up your files

if you take your laptop with you somewhere bring your charger as well

take the stairs, seriously, a little goes a long way

99.9999% of people don’t give a shit about what you were in high school

try to plan and work ahead

never travel alone late at night

don’t hesitate to ask for help—material that took a week to learn in high school can be taught in one lecture in a college class, no one will slow down for you or help you unless you speak up

participate in class

again, talk to your professors, it’s good to in general, and you never know how they can help you outside of class

if you have a problem with your roommate, if you’re not getting along with them, or it’s not working, do something about it ASAP

keep in touch with those you care about, don’t burn bridges

it’s ok if you don’t make friends immediately, it took me awhile to find people i could truly be satisfied with, sometimes it happens when you’re not looking

take this to heart: do things you wouldn’t ordinarily do before. the best things i did this past school year were things i never tried in high school, going on trips with people i didn’t know, who i now call some of the closest friends i have, and going on service work trips out of state

build up your gpa in the beginning by taking classes that are not as tough in your first semester, a gpa is harder to bring up than to knock down, tldr; start strong, start easy

grades matter, BUT, don’t sacrifice your health and well being for them

get enough sleep, you can, i did

don’t base your decisions off what other people would think but if something goes against your morals, stick with your morals

take care of yourself and your body, just because it’s free does not mean you have to eat it, college is the perfect time to make your physical health crash and burn but it is also the perfect time to start having a healthier one

take the time to check over assignments you’re submitting

ratemyprofessor.com is your bff, use it and reference it

sign up for a variety of activities and test out the water to see what you like most

early classes are not that bad

attend campus events

know what’s going on on campus, don’t be clueless in your own environment

get involved in clubs and groups that are associated with your major…but also stuff that isn’t

and if a group/organization that’s associated with your major, like for me PRSSA, has a membership fee, it’s probably worth it

explore your city, campus, downtown….

try to get an internship before it’s required

get a LinkedIn account

always keep an umbrella and a phone charger on hand

make friends with as many people as you can, but don’t “collect” friends, ya know?

go to job fairs/career fairs

it’s ok to stay in sometimes and just j chill

decorate and personalize your room

when preparing to register for classes, make a mock schedule first

find a mentor(s)

first impressions are a big fucking deal

you don’t have to put on a ball gown, but put an effort into the way you represent yourself

make a budget 

So true.

“Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book.” 📙❤️

Destroy the idea that you have to be constantly working or grinding in order to be successful. Embrace the concept that rest, recovery, and reflection are essential parts of the progress towards a successful and ultimately happy life.

When you have some time to kill you naturally head to the nearest starbucks and make a dent in Free food for Millionaires

It’s 2017. You need motivation? No, what you need is discipline.  IT’S TIME TO FOCUS. Force yourself to do things. Force yourself to get up early, make your bed, go get ready, and go. Force yourself to make plans for the day, and follow through with all those plans. Force yourself to get to class early so you can look over the material. Force yourself to pay attention in class and turn off your phone or at least put it on silent. Stop texting your friends and going on Instagram in class. You are wasting your time, so why even bother going to class if your are going to be distracted? Be selfish. Stop giving your time to people that do not matter. YOUR TIME IS SO SO PRECIOUS. STOP WASTING IT! This is the most important thing that you can do right now, take care of you and your education. Stop being distracted by the world and it’s never ending problems. This is the time that you need to put toward yourself because you are the greatest investment of your life. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. EVERYDAY is a chance to wake up and give your 150%. EXHAUST yourself. That is the only way to give your all. At the end of the day, you should be exhausted from working so much, from reading so much, from exercising so much. Don’t go home because you are tired. Do whatever you need to get done and don’t come home until it’s all done. Stay late at the library. You feel tired? Good. That is how you know you are giving it your best. Go to the gym, and give your work out your all. When you go home, you should feel like you are drained. You should feel like you have nothing left to give because you gave it your all. Because then, you can be proud of yourself and everything you have achieved. Giving it your all is what matters. Give your all every single day. Discipline your mind and your body and you will become successful. You fall back one day? That is O.K., try the next day. You are human, so accept your mistakes. However, love yourself enough to know that you will never give up working on yourself and your dreams. THIS IS IT. THIS IS YOUR LIFE. Right now, no matter what circumstances we are all in, is what matters. Take advantage of today. Write down your dreams and force yourself to work toward them, one day at a time.  IT’S TIME TO FOCUS. THIS is your year. This is your life. One day at a time baby. One day at a time. Go ahead and don’t stop.

(via not-now-im-studying)

You must be prepared to work always without applause.

Ernest Hemingway (via mjpg)

What my soft board looks like 😁

Natalie Portman

how to: stay focused // personal advice

I’ve got a lot of asks questioning me about what I do to stay focused, so here it is. 

I don’t force anything. I put a song and start to read / write down as if I wasn’t even studying. If I keep saying to myself that I “MUST FOCUS” or “HAVE TO STOP PROCRASTINATING AND FOLLOW THIS SCHEDULE MINUTE BY MINUTE”, that does not flow. It has to be a natural thing.

I do not impose limits. Personally, this business of “study such thing for this long and then look at the phone for five minutes and come back” does not work at all for me. Sometimes I’m the middle of the resume, stop, check my phone, and then come back. Sometimes limits can be an obstacle. How many times were you in the middle of studying and started thinking about your notifications? Do a favor for yourself, check it quickly and then come back. (Of course, you know yourself better than I do. You know you’re going to procrastinate and get even more distracted? Then don’t check.)

INTEREST. Man, if you’re studying as an obligation you already fucked up. It‘s important to create an interest for learning, not only a “must remember everything for the test!!!” because, guess what? You’re gonna forget the very next day. Just think of the happiness you will feel when you finally realize that you know the subject?

Yes, you CAN learn it. One of the most common situations I find myself in is “giving up” on a subject because I thought “oh my god I will not learn it !!” If you stop trying, then you won’t. Research, watch video class, read the school book, whatever. Just don’t stop.

Different methods. Can’t concentrate on reading now? Write. Can‘t write? Research. Not feeling like searching? Watch a video class. No? Read the material and then listen to it. As I said, just don’t stop.

Tried it all and still can’t focus? Newsflash, you have a human body that needs to be taken care of. REST, EAT and GET HYDRATED. Did it? Now try again.