Kwachtk

drink water

take a nap

cook your fav food

wash your face

moisturize

face mask is god!!

wear something you like!! don’t leave some things for special occasions. If you like it, wear it, feel beautiful whenever you want

go for a walk

put your phone away, and meet your friends in the real life

laugh!! and smile. You are more beautiful with a smile

play with pet 

don’t talk to toxic people, i beg of you

hug someone!!

listen to a motivational speak

read a book

draw something 

make a step to achieve your goal 

listen to music, and sing like no one is listen!! 

just dance~ 

go to the mirror. Say that you love yourself, find one and more! thing that you like about yourself

just make things you always wanted, but you were scared, don’t dream it, do it

learn a new skill

smile to strangers and spread love and happiness!!! make someone smile

• review your year. make a 2017 highlights journal page or something. jot down everything important that happened to you within the year, good and bad preferably, so you have a clear, summarized view of all aspects of your life.

• make a life map. it could be a chart or several lists or a spider map or an actual map with drawings and shite. what’s important is that you get a visual of all the parts of your life. mark which ones are most important to you, which ones need to be improved, where you want to focus on the most.. and make feasible plans.

• clean your room. and i’m talking, a makeover. rearrange your furniture. reorganize your things. give at least 35% of your stuff away. calibrate it to your needs and focuses of 2018. place the tools you’ll be using for those where they’ll be highly accessible.

• clean your virtual space. organize the files in your phone, tablet, and laptop into clearly labeled folders. weed out the stuff you have no use for anymore, and upload all the sentimental stuff to a cloud storage. delete your browser history, caches, apps that do nothing but distract you and take up memory.

• tie up your loose ends. all the things you’ve been postponing? kidding yourself by saying ‘i’ll do it tomorrow’ or now, ‘i’ll start next year’? finish them before the year ends. whether that’s going to your doctor for that check-up scheduled three months ago or getting your hair cut or quitting a vice. just.. do it/start now.

remember that your life won’t magically reset on January first. 2018 won’t adjust for you; life’s too much of a jerk for that, so you have to make it yours. good luck!

HERMIONE GRANGER (Harry Potter): Read as much as you can about the subjects that you’re studying.

ELLE WOODS (Legally Blonde): Take as many past exams as possible.

SPENCER HASTINGS (Pretty Little Liars): Sometimes you have to make yourself study, even though you aren’t in the right headspace.

CHER HOROWITZ (Clueless): Don’t be afraid to talk to your professor about a grade that you think is unfair, or about something you believe has been misgraded.

RORY GILMORE (Gilmore Girls): Set goals for yourself and go after them.

ALEX DUNPHY (Modern Family): Be prepared for anything.

CADY HERON (Mean Girls): If you’re really struggling with a subject, think about getting a tutor.

ANNIE EDISON (Community): Form a study group.

GABRIELLA MONTEZ (High School Musical): It’s possible to be involved in extracurriculars and still get good grades, as long as you find the right balance.

SERENA VAN DER WOODSEN (Gossip Girl): Sometimes the best learning is hands-on. Do something yourself or pursue an internship in your field.

wow this post has been a long time coming. after many months, finally here is part 2! this is dedicated to saving paper, since us as students need to use so much paper, so here are some things we can take note of to try to help where we can!

use both sides of the paper!

and if u don’t, USE AS SCRAP PAPER !!

i like to keep a folder of scrap paper around

scrap paper = paper that still have at least half a page without anything on it

u can use this to do rough workings, jot down ideas, sketches, rough drafts, lists, brainstorming, etc.

shred used paper to use as packaging

to cushion stuff when u put them into boxes

recycle!

esp newspapers, textbooks, etc. where it’s just a huge chunk of paper

have a paper recycling bin in ur room! that way, u only have to clear the bin when it’s full, which means u go down to the recycling bin once a month or every few months for me! barely takes time out of ur day

sell / donate!

if u have magazines, books, textbooks, workbooks, all lying around, don’t just burn them or throw them all away

u can make some quick $$ if u sell these to ur juniors or put it up online!

or u can donate them to the salvation army or the local drive near u or to the old age centre!

if ur printing for ur eyes only

print at least 2 pages on one! (set the print settings on 2 pages per sheet!)

reduce the font size, line spacing, and margin sizes to reduce pages printed

use the print range feature

do u rly need to print all pages? 

only select pages to u absolutely need

when printing powerpoint slides

print handouts instead of slides (6 slides per page!)

u can find this on the print settings page!

USE THINNER PAPER!!

when buying paper, keep a look out for the gms or g/m2 (grams per square meter)

thinner paper does not change the performance and can save u some $$

most printers work well with 70 and 80 gsm

just for reference, 70gsm uses and costs 15% more than 60gsm while 100gsm uses and costs 20% more than 80gsm

buy recycled paper and notebooks

a ton of paper made from recycled paper saves 4,100 kilowatt hours of energy, 7000 gallons of water, 60 pounds of air emissions, and 3 cubic yards of landfill space

recycled notebooks from staples, barnes and noble

who said u needed to compromise on design? ciak, ecojot, calepino

e-books

be it on ibooks or kindle

ur saving so much more money as opposed to buying the paperback too!

if u rly rly enjoy a book, u may allow urself to buy the paperback, but most times we only read one book once 

ONLINE NEWS / MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS !!

these daily or monthly subscriptions can rly add up

subscribing online saves money AND space, and makes reading a lot easier and more convenient

donate to tree planting organisations and charities!

(all of these have been checked for at least 3 stars on charity navigator)

trees for the future (international), earth day canopy project (international), national forest foundation, forest trends

happy holidays everybody! hope this has been helpful, and i hope u will adopt some of these for 2018, remember we all share this earth, and we all have a v important part to play in taking care of our planet. 

watch sunrises. somehow, this makes me feel like the beginning of something new, the birth of my better, stronger self. watch the way the sun rises, because just like that, you will rise and shine, too.

sing your heart out. dance until you’re exhausted. make art until you run out paint. write out your feelings. indulge in your passion and do it like you’re doing it to impress yourself.

relive your favorite, happiest memory. it is one easy guaranteed effective way to make your heart, your soul, and even your lips smile. no bias.

rewatch your favorite film. grab some chips or a bucket of popcorn and have a marathon of your most-watched flicks. don’t hesitate to replay your favorite scenes if you feel the need to.

aspire and try to be kind, always. being kind on a daily basis is possibly one of the most exhausting and draining thing to ever do but i promise at the end of the day, before you go to sleep you will realize: it is worth it. always.

take a shower. scrub off your creeping self-doubts, smell nice, and bask yourself with self-love. take your time to ponder about your life inside the tub. this is the best time to reevaluate and relax.

be spontaneous even just for one day. drive away from the city. get a haircut. go on a coffee shop hopping. sketch random places. let your heart and your thoughts wander. let your soul soar and be free.

treat yourself. it does not necessarily have to be something enormous or expensive. it could just be a new set of brushes or getting a thrifted second-hand book or buying yourself some bouquet of fresh flowers. it’s not about the tags, it’s about the thought.

rekindle your love for a forgotten passion. nothing beats falling in love with something the second time around. touch your dusty piano keys, change your rusty violin strings, and once again (just like the old days), let your ardor dance in harmony.

take a nap. because sometimes, the best way to temporarily solve something, is to do nothing. yes, it is only ethical to give yourself a break from the overwhelming society. and yes, taking a nap most of the time makes everything better.

if you want to or feel the need to, cry. there is nothing wrong with doing something that is inherent. this does not prove that you are weak, it only proves that you are a human being capable of feeling things. so really, do not ever plan to hinder yourself from crying. it’s often times therapeutic.

hello and welcome to my first studyblr post!! i’ve seen a ton of these around, but not many have all the tips i’ve learned throughout high school. i go to a private preparatory school and i’m top 5 in my class and i lead many extracurriculars. last year was the CRAZIEST year of my life, but with a certain mindset & only a few all nighters, i managed all A’s in all advanced courses. So, here are the tips i’ve learned!!

write stuff down!!!! i know it is the most obvious thing, but writing down anything you need to remember, whether that be homework, tests, quizzes, events, due dates, reminders…anything! checking off these things at night is so satisfying and you won’t forget anything important. when i’m in the #zone, my mind often thinks of stupid questions/thoughts. I’ll jot these questions/misc. thoughts unrelated to what i’m focusing on to come back to later and explore!! (for example, i was doing an frq for econ and i thought of doing this post, so i wrote it down in my journal.)

organization. there are so many masterposts out there to help you with organization. my method included binders & comp. notebooks.. that’s about it! i’m not very organized

get to know teachers. this is probably what helped a lot my junior year. not only is maintaining good relationships with teachers good for you, it can be beneficial to your grade as well. when you make friends with teachers you always have someone to talk/rant to & they always give you the inside gossip about teachers/other students. have coffee/lunch w them, or talk about theories from the class they teach. they give you a lot of perspectives on the course and cool ideas!

manage your time. again, another broad statement. but what i did every night kept me sane. my schedule every day after classes (including saturday) was: 

practice until 5 

extracurriculars until dinner (6:30-7) 

minimal homework until done (usually 1-2 hours)

study for 1+ hours if needed (8-9 pm)

enjoyment time (at least 30 min)

while this may not be a lot for most people, it was a lot for me and i needed time to make myself happy. school and friends make me happy, but so does alone time. putting this minimum of 30 min a day (if i don’t fall asleep before that) really helped me get through demanding courses because i had an incentive. this schedule also helped me avoid procrastination!! ALSO, I prioritized like hell. Honestly, if homework was a completion grade, I wouldn’t try at all unless i needed the practice. Same goes with classes. the ones i had high A’s in, i would sometimes sacrifice a homework grade in order to get enough sleep or study for another test. while this is not the most ethical way of doing it, it helped.

Avoid procrastination. procrastination is your worst enemy. I used to be so bad, but now i’m getting better. this is key. in order to beat procrastination, you have to have self discipline. simple as that. get inspired. for many of you, it’s your studyblr community, for me it was for personal pride and competition. you must execute to get the job done. it will be worth it in the end.

do the little things. put away the phone. put music on if it helps. stretch a little. get some water. get as content and comfortable as you can when you study.

SLEEP!!!! that’s all i can say. sleep sleep sleep. it’s important. i know life is busy, but make time for sleep if you can. mental illness is a bitch, and sometimes it can make falling asleep hard. i know. just try your best & that’s enough. anytime i had free time during the day, i slept. nothing is more important than sleep, and if i didn’t get at least 8 hours of sleep the night before, i tried to catch up as best as i could. your brain needs a break to refuel and you will feel refreshed the next day. 

Eating healthy. i rarely see this tip around (maybe i’m not searching hard enough) but i think it’s important. eating healthy is excellent for your brain function & body function. it’s hard, especially in college, to have to motivation (or money) to make your own dinner, lunch & breakfast everyday. but. it’s. worth. it. i can’t stress this enough. i feel more awake and energized at school and workouts and your body has to have these nutrients to keep functioning well. 

Exercise. gross i know, please don’t hurt me, but exercise goes right with eating healthy. the better you feel about yourself, the better you will do in school. simple enough. you will have more motivation, energy, and happiness with a good diet and exercise. running daily and occasionally swimming gets me though the week, and while sometimes i don’t want to workout, i always feel good in the end. find something you like doing and stick to it. try to work out 3 times a week. after every workout, i am always motivated to study

UNDERSTAND THE MATERIAL. it’s so obvious, but so many people just memorize. while you have to memorize any new thing you learn in the beginning, there is a time when you must apply what you memorized. you must actually think about why this term/concept is what it is based on memorized facts. you must see the whole picture and how little things relate and why they do. last year i realized this and it worked wonders. for me, if i understood the big picture, i knew the facts by heart. it dawned on me that you must train the mind to think. when going through notes, quizzes, tests, and studying i always asked myself why is this important and what it relates to. retention. is. key. understanding, and not memorizing facts will help so so much!!

STUDY BUDDIES. i can’t stress enough how much this helped me. coming from a boarding school, it’s easy to work on homework with friends all the time. to review for a test, my friends in the class would all meet and discuss the material. i’m an auditory learner, so this worked 10x better. what i’ve learned is that if you can teach it, you know it. when i could explain concepts to my friends, i knew i didn’t have to study that. if questions came up when i was trying to discuss my line of thinking, i revisited my notes and tried to understand why i didn’t get it. if we had study guides, we would all do the question and discuss why we got our answers after. for me, discussion is the best way to get new perspectives and ideas as well as understanding the topic better. (i also love talking so).

ask questions. even if its stupid. even if you’re just curious. always ask them. 

I’m now entering my third semester of my second year college, and I think I’ve gathered enough experience in college to give relevant tips to incoming freshmen or just regular old college students. I’m not an expert in getting all As, not getting those 4.0s in every subject, but I have maintained my place as a Dean’s Lister since my first sem freshmen year, so I think I do have an idea on what I’m talking about. Feel free to take my advice! (or not).

homework/projects 1. seriously, once you get information on your homework/project, start them immediately. DO NOT wait till last minute to complete them because you will regret it. Do them as soon as the professor assigns it to you so you won’t spend the next few weeks stressing out on the amount of homework you have.

2. start creative projects first. unless you can pull creativity out of your hat whenever you need it, I highly suggest you start creative projects as soon as  you get them because trust me when I say you do not want to be decorating/designing shit when the due date is tomorrow.

3. do your best in every assignment; trust me, the points will count at the end of the semester.

4. do extra credit work and treat it as priority work; excess points are cushion points. 

5. group projects suck but here’s a good rule to keep in mind: if you’re the leader, delegate those tasks (read up on division of labor). if you’re a group member, do the delegated task as best as you can. know your goal as a group; are you guys in it to get to know each other and build rapport? then the output won’t matter as much and focus on helping and getting to know each other. Is the output the most important part? Then be real with each other; if you can’t do this task, then don’t do it & instead give it to someone else. Some may not even get any work at all, because what matters is the output. 

friends/other people/professors 1.  keep your circle small. your friends are there to guide you, support you and tell you when you’re wrong. find the crowd you vibe with the most because trust me, the right friends are medicine to all college problems

2. those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind. keep that in mind, my dear.

3. love the professor? do your best in their class. hate the professor? do your best in their class. it doesn’t matter whether you hate the prof or not; they still hold your grade at the end of the semester. if you really can’t stand them, just think of it as training your ability to be humble (and not punch someone).

4. talk to your professors. they’re not as bad as you think they are.

5. seriously, go to their consultation hours when you think you’re failing. 

class/notes 1. TAKE NOTES. cannot emphasize this enough. don’t rely on anyone to take your notes for you; it’s your education, it’s time you take responsibility for it.

2. sit in front of class if you believe you’ll get distracted if you sit in the back. 

3. talk to your seatmate! you’ll need them when you get sick and can’t come to class.

4. again, TAKE NOTES. don’t photograph the slide. write that shit down, or type it if you don’t want to write. bottom line, don’t picture it. 

5. revise, revise, revise. if you want to understand the material, a good way to go about it is to revise your notes in a way YOU can understand.

having fun/relationships 1. have fun! i was too stressed when I was a freshman all because I focused too much on getting 4.0s. It’s possible to get 4.0s and still have fun! having fun doesn’t need to be about drinking (although if it is, then stay safe doing it!) it could be reading a book or hanging out with your friends, whatever works for you and keeps your mind off school for awhile.

2. it’s okay to have crushes! they could be your inspiration (but don’t let them be your distraction)

3. talk to that cute guy you’ve been classmates with ever since February who you can’t stop looking at. you’ve got nothing to lose.

4. relationships are a good source of support, love and care but pls don’t forget your friends.

5. learn how to have fun, and college will be easier. 

Reminder: having fun does not equal to slacking off.