in the past, i had to prepare for several exams by self-studying for long hours at home, so over the years i’ve learned the best ways to adapt to this situation, which i now present in this little infographic. i hope it can ease some of the pressure! 💜

1. I am unique

2. I am worthwhile

3. I am worthy

4. I can change

5. I can make it

6. I can succeed

make yourself an office/work area at home and try to make it as inviting as possible!! bring your favourite candle, cute stationery, or put your own study playlist/soundtrack on speakers. especially in a situation like this it’s very important to have a space that makes you feel calm and ready to be as productive as possible!!

set aside specific times for work, and try to re-create having a specific time table like you would at school/work/uni. whether that means setting out certain tasks or going through the assigned day’s work one by one, structure is really important!

minimizing distractions is crucial, especially at home put your phone in another room, use a special app to lock your phone for a set amount of time, disconnect your laptop from the internet or block certain sites you tend to use when procrastinating.

Every library is closed, so are universities and you may be desperate because the library was the only place where you were able to focus.. I totally get you! But as someone who’ve spent most of its school years studying at home.. I can assure you that it’s totally fine! You just need a few techniques and organization skills and you’ll see that everything will be ok ! So here we go : 

Clean and declutter your study space. Store the books you don’t need anymore and only keep the essentials on your desk. I’ll share with you an old article I wrote on Tumblr about how to upgrade your workspace!

Block distractions : give your phone to your mom, use the Forest app, the Flipd app or just put it in airplane mode !

Cut the outside noise : a good playlist (my Lofi playlist for example :P), earplugs and the door shut can help you be in the « library » mood…

Make a study plan and try to stick to a routine.. It’s easy to lose track of time when you spend all of your days at home! This is why keeping a healthy routine and set hours for meals and breaks is really important!

Since it’s easier to get distracted at home, make sure to take more breaks than the usual (for example a 45min study session and a 10 min break).

If you have online lectures and a #studybuddy that you trust, why not split the work (for example you follow half of the lectures and your colleague the other half) and then sharing your notes? Also, why not creating a Google Drive with your colleagues so everyone shares their notes? The quarantine will be long so a little support from each other is more than welcomed!!

You can also have skype sessions with your colleagues to debate about a subject, or quiz each other so you don’t feel too alone and you keep track of your progress :)

You can also take the time to go deeper into the subjects you have to study and not only scratching the surface like you may be used to do ! This is also a great way to discover if you’re more interested in some subjects than others and who knows, maybe you’ll find a new passion !

Energy Management

A human-based organization method

click on images for better resolution; images also available here (link to google drive)

Other posts that may be of interest:

Getting stuff done: How to deal with a lack of motivation

Flexible time-blocking: A more breathable way to get things done

there’s a lot of shit on here about lighting candles and waking up early to see the sunset and if we are being hella honest, no one actually does that. u probably don’t own candles or if u do there in a closet and the only time you wake up early all year round is never. so here’s a guide to actual human beings.

1. Recognize that there is no-one who is ‘normal’. Love who you are and accept your differences.

2. Don’t think of your differences as inferiorities. They are all part of the package that make you “you”. And the world would be boring if we all were just the same.

3. Refuse to give up on yourself or your dreams. The biggest mistake you could ever make is to not try something in case it goes wrong.

4. Respect your own opinions, your viewpoints and beliefs. If people don’t like then, they can just get over it! Trust your heart and intuition – don’t just listen to others.

5. Don’t be afraid to express, and be, yourself. Develop your own style and your own creative flair.

6. Don’t listen to anyone who puts you down. It’s likely that they’re suffering from low self-esteem – hence they’re trying to feel better by criticising you.

7. Hang out with people who love you just for “you” – and who know that they have failings and hang ups, too.

1. If it feels wrong, don’t do it.

2. Say “exactly” what you mean.

3. Don’t be a people pleaser.

4. Trust your instincts.

5. Never speak badly about yourself.

6. Never give up on your dreams.

7. Don’t be afraid to say “no”.

8. Don’t be afraid to say “yes”.

9. Resist the need to always have control.

10. Stay away from drama and negativity – as much as possible.

So.. Schools are closed, everything is basically down and you’re up to at least 2 weeks of quarantine. You’ve bought your toilet paper, made your pasta stock (no penne lisce of course, who tf eats them anyway?!), completed 30 levels of CandyCrush and now you may be wondering… What the hell will I do during this whole time??

Well… I got you covered. I’ll just make a couple of articles on how to help YOU to make the best of this homestay! side note : this may be the first and the last time that you can save the world from your couch, so be happy about it : we’re living a historical moment!).

First things first : MAKE A LIST. If you don’t stop one moment and think of everything you need to do, you’ll end up doing basically nothing, and this is why SUMMARIZING what you need to do can help you have a clearer vision : What are your top priorities (school work, job/college applications, deadlines, thesis, etc.)? What are your other priorities (exercising, cleaning the house, doing your laundry, washing your hands, feeding the cat…)?

Now that you’ve listed your work/home obligations you have 2 choices : either you have so much workload that you’ll basically only do this (and this quarantine will rather look like an exam session => I’ll write a 2nd article on how to study efficiently at home) OR you have still plenty of free time !

Which leads to asking yourself what are the things you’ve always wanted to do/improve/try but never had the motivation/time to? The examples are infinite : finish a book, start a blog, declutter, meditate more, journaling, etc..

Once you’ve made your list, you can PLAN your days. It doesn’t need to be super serious like a study plan but just knowing what you’ll be up to each day will make you less anxious and the time will pass faster.

Last thing : don’t forget to CHILL ! As I said, it’s the first time you won’t feel guilty about staying at home! So keep some time apart to watch your favorite TV show, enjoy precious moments with your family, sleep, and take care of yourself.

So tell me.. What would you like to do during this quarantine? Do you have any goals?

I’ll come back very soon for more details !! In the meantime, please STAY SAFE, wash your hands and AVOID close contact!!

in the past, i had to prepare for several exams by self-studying for long hours at home, so over the years i’ve learned the best ways to adapt to this situation, which i now present in this little infographic. i hope it can ease some of the pressure! 💜