Work hard, dream big and never stop exploring.

here are tips I discovered very recently:

something is better than nothing. 5 minutes of work are better than zero. Just because you missed something on your schedule doesn’t mean you can’t still work on it, even for 5 minutes. Grow and build on this.

second drafts / reviews can be done after.

Don’t think you are going to do your very best work on the first try. Take the weight of perfectionism off your shoulders.

don’t think about doing it. just do it as fast as you can.

build on your productivity, not your failures.

If you come from a past of procrastinating and now feel motivated to change and discipline yourself, do NOT try to do everything at once.

if you have a set of different goals to accomplish, begin with the most important one. Wait until the rotine of working for that one settles in (you feel productive and comfortable-ish), and then begin with the next. Repeat.

this way you’ll be building your way up and not juggling everything at the same time, hoping everything works out.

be patient with yourself, you’ll get there!

set smaller deadlines for your goals

have monthly and weekly-ish deadlines

e.g. if you are doing a project, due 22nd Feb, set personal deadlines, like have Introduction written by 2nd Feb, have Methods written by 10th Feb, have project complete by 18th Feb.

take them as seriously as you possibly can, don’t miss out on yourself.

write realistic daily tasks and don’t stop until you finish them. after them you can do whatever you want

on writing realistic daily tasks, the secret is knowing you can only do so much in one day, but trusting you can accomplish everything in the course of any period of time (a week, or 2 weeks or a month, etc.) because you will combine the work from all these different days.

it’s very tempting to write down all the tasks you need to accomplish in one day to just get over with it, but the real deal is you won’t accomplish half of them. You’ll feel very unproductive then, wich leads to demotivation.

spread daily tasks in the time necessary.

have a consistent sleep schedule.

if your mind isn’t ready everything will fall apart.

have one rest day per week where you plan nothing, do whatever you want except studying. this can be harder than you expect!

Good luck with the Thing. You can do the Thing. You will do the Thing. You just have to do the Thing.

Best wishes,

1.      Stop spending so much money at the vending machine, it adds up to more than you think

2.      If you’re hungry, eat. Don’t look around at other people, don’t wait for them not to be looking, just eat.

3.      Don’t hold your pee for that long, no one is talking about you for going to the bathroom, just go.

4.      Laugh when it’s funny, your laugh is beautiful and unique, let others hear it.

5.      Your mom is more than likely right, that person is being fake.

6.      Don’t be afraid to reject a guy if you don’t like him; think of yourself first.

7.      Don’t think that your bothering others, unless they say it, don’t think it.

8.      Your mind is your biggest prison, and I know that it’s hard to escape it…but at least try. Fight to get out, don’t let those thoughts and doubts overwhelm you.

9.      You’re funny, someone finds you funny, and that’s because you are.

10.  Your voice is beautiful, speak and sing your heart out.

11.  Your hair isn’t ugly, don’t be insecure of it.

12.  You’re not too skinny/fat…you’re the way you are because it’s perfect just for you.

13.  Eat all you want, stop starving your beautiful self.

14.  People that matter care…people that don’t matter don’t.

15.  When they ask you what’s wrong, that means they care…say something.

16.  Don’t hold it back, don’t keep it in, don’t tell yourself that you’ll get over it, don’t tell yourself that you’ll be bothering others, don’t tell yourself that nobody cares, SAY SOMETHING.

17.  Crying is alright, no one thinks less of you for it.

18.  Stop covering yourself so much, it’s unhealthy both mentally, emotionally, and physically.

19.  Get out of your room more, even if you are depressed, staying in there won’t help you at all.

20.  Take a moment to pause everything, everything, and just breathe… You made it.

21.  At the end of the day, you worked hard, pat yourself on the shoulder, think about what you did well and the mistakes you won’t need to do again, then call it a day.

22.  Say I’m sorry

23.  Forgive, but don’t be so naïve to let your heart get trampled on again.

24.  If they hurt you once, okay…twice, don’t bring them back as if nothing happened.

25.  Learn to go with your gut, believe me, sometimes it’s right.

26.  Just because is five for $4 doesn’t mean you should buy 20…buy what you need.

27.  Think about others before yourself, it helps lessen the anxiety too.

28.  Write…and if you’re not good at writing, paint. It doesn’t need to be a masterpiece, it just needs to be you…

29.  Grades do not define you. Give your all to your grades, but if you still don’t pass, it’s not your fault, it’s not YOU.

30.  Mistakes happen, learn, but don’t let them chain you up and drag you down. It’s not YOU.

31.  Sleep, just one hour more of sleep can change everything.

32.  Take a warm shower, it helps.

33.  Drink more water, it’ll help with the headaches.

34.  I love saying this – “Live until you laugh, laugh until it hurts, hurt until you cry, cry until you Heal”…please, never hold it in.

35.  What people say about you doesn’t define you, what you say about yourself does.

36.  Let it out, but don’t let everyone know every single detail about your life, keep somethings private.

37.  Call your mom, tell her you love her.

38.  Listen to your grandmother, even when she starts to rant.

39.  You can’t please everyone because some people just don’t want to be pleased, erase them from your life.

40.  Pray. If you believe in God, even prayer helps you so much when you’re hurting, trust me.

41.  Say thank you, even for another day of life that went terribly.

42.  Don’t procrastinate, even if you write one word/sentence a day since the assignment was given…do that.

43.  Don’t eat out all the time

44.  Remember the good days when times go bad, appreciate the lessons learned when days are good.

45.  You don’t NEED to go to prom, you don’t NEED to go to homecomings or parties, you won’t miss things if you don’t.

46.  Being an introvert isn’t a curse, love yourself whether you’re outgoing or not.

47.  They don’t need to tell you that you’re beautiful for you to be beautiful, it was already a fact before they stated it.

48.  You don’t NEED a boyfriend, no matter how many of your friends or peers have one. Don’t rush into a relationship just because you’re the odd one out.

49.  Keep your virginity, and it you lose it, don’t end your life or future because of it.

50.  Love others freely. And yourself too.

51.  Organize yourself, nothing sucks worse than getting a zero on a paper because you couldn’t find it, not because you didn’t do it.

52.  Learn to let go if it hurts you, don’t hang on to something/someone that brings you pain.

53.  Keep in touch with teachers who were there for you.

54.  Someone loves you, someone will miss you when you’re gone…remember that.

55.  You’re not a burden.

56.  You worked hard.

57.  Think of that future someone (God has) for you and smile.

58.  If things don’t go on as plan, don’t be afraid to throw everything out the window and start all over again…breathe, and do it.

59.  You’ll survive without them, even if it hurts now, you already are.

60.  Worry more about what you do than how you look. Character lasts, looks don’t.

I saw something like this and wanted to do my own version for this…

this is the perfect grade of good luck

athena: unsatisfied with a 99 test grade, could probably commit the perfect murder, underestimated, likes french bakeries, early riser

poseidon: chill, likes beaches, doesn’t try in school but still does fine, filled notebooks, kinda a dick sometimes, sleeps a lot, environmentalist, collects seashells

aphrodite: really good looking and knows it, acts sweet but will legit kill you if you get on their bad side, perfect makeup, fancy starbucks drinks, intimidating

zeus: says they can burp the alphabet but just burps twenty six times, gives zero shits about others, an asshole, racist, sexist, homophobic, get off my blog if you’re a zeus

heista: warm coffee shops, has a sweet smile, journals, kinda sad inside, a bit of a loner, messy hair, easily likeable but doesn’t know it

These are just a few things that I like to do to de-stress/relax

Drink water; it feels way better than eating junk food and replaces the munchies.

Listen to soft music (I’ve been liking the majority of the We’ve Done Something Wonderful album, AKMU, and these two spotify playlists). Then, switch to upbeat music that makes you happy/some jams.

Drink tea. I like oolong, green, earl grey, and peppermint.

Take a shower and wash your hair, face, and body. Use ones that smell good to you.

Do a face mask and moisturize!

Allow your skin to breathe and take a break from makeup.

If you want something sweet, eat some fruit. I find it usually satisfies my sweet tooth.

If you’re tired, take a nap either 20, 60, or 90 minutes long (the latest to start one should be 4 pm to keep from interrupting your sleep schedule much).

Watch a show that makes you laugh; nothing that gets you too emotionally invested.

Delete pictures from your phone you don’t need or want; import the ones you want to keep to your laptop, a flash drive, or external hard drive.

Make a list of tasks you need to complete from easiest/shortest time to completion to most difficult so that you won’t feel so overwhelmed. Finish a few easy tasks first, then work on some of the difficult ones, even if just a little. If you need a break, do some of those easy ones in between.

Write down your thoughts if your mind feels cluttered.

Exercise. Whether it’s dance, pilates, running, or otherwise, it helps to relieve stress.

Go out and enjoy the sun’s warmth. Soak in that Vitamin D (but wear sunscreen!)

Eat at least two meals a day, one should be breakfast. I got in the habit of one + 2-3 snacks, and I felt awful, hungry most of the day, and gained weight bc of a slowed metabolism even with less food and lots of water, so don’t do it.

Clean your room. Working in a clean space makes it easier to focus. If your room is clean, just tidy up a bit: make your bed, fold laundry, change your sheets, etc.

Don’t stress over minimal things. Try to think long term.