study hard

Ever wonder what your life would be like if you lived up to your full potential? Would your body be healthier? Your skin clearer? Bank account bigger? I think about these things all the time, and, judging my a previous post, you guys do to. Below is a chart designed to help all of us live up to our full potential. I’ve broken it down into time frames to help keep you from getting overwhelmed. Write the chart down and hang it someplace where you can see it all the time. I will be starting this challenge tomorrow, 9/8. I’ll check in with you guys every Sunday to track my progress. I have specific goals in mind for myself, and you guys should make some too! I really want to know how you guys are doing. Tag your progress posts with #sbfpc so I can track it and take a look. Let’s get to it!

EVERY MORNING

Stretch. First thing. Really give your body enough time to wake up. Touch your toes. Roll out your shoulders. Do not hit snooze!

Do your full skincare routine. I have mine detailed here, but do whatever works for you and your complexion. Be gentle and consistent. 

Brush your teeth and floss. I used to be a big floss-skipper too, but you’d be amazed at how dig of a difference it makes. Rinse with a whitening mouthwash. I use one by Crest, and I notice a major difference in my teeth’s overall whiteness in just a few days.

Give yourself enough time to get ready. Whether you’re a wash-and-go kind of girl, or someone who spends an hour doing a full contouring routine before class (and either one is fine!), make sure you aren’t rushing. If you need to wake up a few minutes earlier than normal, so be it. Rushing sets an awful, stressed-out tone for the rest of the day. Allow yourself to be relaxed before taking on the day.

Eat something. I’m not going to say eat a big breakfast, because some people (myself included) just can’t eat in the morning. But you should eat, or at least bring a little something with you to work or school. If you can’t eat a full breakfast, grab a fruit! You won’t be as hungry come lunch time, making you less likely to gorge yourself.

Shower. You can do this at night, in the morning, whatever. Again, this is something you should allow some time for. I don’t wash my hair every day, but I do condition it every day (from the ears down). Scrub yourself with a delicious-smelling body wash. If you shave, make yourself as smooth as a dolphin, dude. If you don’t, then don’t and don’t ever ever ever let anyone make you feel bad or weird about it. When you get out of the shower, wrap yourself in a fluffy towel and totally slather your sexy self with lotion. Top to bottom. Do it as soon as you can post-shower so it can really sink in. 

Put leave-in condition throughout your damp hair and comb it through.

Put on an outfit that makes you feel good! So important!

Drink water. Drink water. Drink water. Drink water!!!!!

Take a look at your daily to-do list. Knock out the most pressing stuff first. Take pride when you cross things off your list.

Make your bed! Oh my god, make your bed. Do it. Do it. Do it. 

EVERY AFTERNOON 

Follow the “touch it once” approach. This is a truly life-changing thing. When a task is in front of you, no matter how big or small, just do it right then and there. How many times have you gotten a work email or homework assignment and thought, “Eh, I’ll do it later”? And then later never comes? Once something pops up, do it once. Squash it and be done. Cross things off your list and feel like a badass.

Try to go for a walk at lunch. Even one little lap around the block or campus will reenergize you like nobody’s business. 

Drink water. Drink water. Drink water. Drink water!!!!!

Be present. This is so hard for me too, but you have to make a major effort to be present in whatever you’re doing. Be engaged and plugged-in and just exist in the moment. Give 100 percent.

Be friendly to friends and strangers. A smile goes a long way.

Eat something. Eat what you packed for lunch (see below) and take a break from working while you do it. You need “you time”!

EVERY EVENING

Take your makeup off as soon as you’re in for the night. Wash your face with your full routine and let your skin have a break. 

Workout. You can also do this in the morning. Whatever works for you. Make a great playlist and go hard af. Get your cardio in. Get your strength training in. Earn every freaking sweat bead forming on your forehead. Earn your shower!

Knock out your homework. Life is infinitely better you don’t have anything hanging over your head. Half the time, the energy and emotion you spent dreading/putting off your work is ten times worse than the work itself.

Make a list of what needs to be done tomorrow. It’ll set you up for success the next day, and you won’t forget anything!

Drink water. Drink water. Drink water. Drink water!!!!!

Lay out your clothes for tomorrow. This will save you SO MUCH TIME in the morning omg I can’t even tell you how important this is.

Eat something great. And once you’ve decided to be done eating for the night, be done. Brush your teeth so you can’t eat again.

After brushing, do a whitening treatment. Whether it’s classic baking soda, a Crest white strip, or a laser. Do something. And floss! Retainers in too, ladies 0:)

Relax! Take a few hours to do what YOU want to do. Scroll through Tumblr, binge on some Netflix, FaceTime gossip with your friends, anything. Do whatever makes you happiest. 

Shut the electronics off an hour before you want to go to bed. Put your phone on sleep mode. If you stare at the screen, it will keep you awake and alert and you won’t be able to fall asleep. A good night’s sleep is crucial for weightless and general happiness lol

Do a quick sweep of your room and see if there’s anything you can put away real quick. A clean space is a happy space.

Crawl into your bed (aren’t you happy you took the time to make it?!) and read a book by lamplight for a while. When you start to feel sleepy, go to sleep. Don’t push it. You kicked ass today and you deserve rest. 

EVERY WEEKEND

Do something with your friends. It just has to be one thing. Even if you’re just hanging out at the coffee shop, spending time with your squad will make you a better, happier person.

Drink water. Drink water. Drink water. Drink water!!!!!

Do something just for you. Set your laptop up in the bathroom and watch a Netflix marathon while you take a bubble bath. Buy an old school bottle of Mr. Bubbles ($3 at Target!) and really just soak. Relax. Light a candle.

Do something creative. You can read a book, write, blog, draw, code, anything. It just has to be something that speaks to your passion.

Track your progress. Just do this once a week so it doesn’t become all-consuming. And remember that non-scale victories are just as important as shedding pounds.

Take the time to be grateful. Tell your friend how much you admire her taste in music. Mention to your mom how much you love her cooking and how happy you are that she takes care of you. Thank your teaching after an especially interesting lecture. When you do something awesome, take a moment to admire yourself. Be grateful for even the little things.

Hi everyone! this is my first ever ‘masterpost’ and I’m v excited! I recently bought an incredibly pretty notebook, and when I held it in my hands in the store, the idea of a colour journal came to my mind. In this post I’ll try to explain what this means, and how I am planning to make one! 

What is a colour journal?

My idea was basically to ‘collect’ colours. During the summer break I will try to capture any colour that I feel like I want to remember. Think of colours like the deep grey of clouds right before rain, fields of flowers, a nice cup of tea and literally anything else you want? It is quite similar to a regular journal, or a travel journal, but you focus on colours. I want to remember moments by the colour of the sky, my coffee, the ocean etc. 

What do I need to make one?

Literally only a notebook. I chose one with blank pages because I think that gives me the freedom that I was looking for. But wether you want grid pages, lined paper or dotted, it doesn’t matter. Just go with what you want. And you might want a pen, but since this is the studyblr community I am just going to go ahead and assume that you guys own a pen. If you want to draw colours or places as well, i think simply coloured pencils will suffice. But really, be creative and use whatever resources you have!

Why would I make/start one?

Well, we often take pictures of landscapes or pretty things we come across, and we write about certain experiences. Why not mix it up for once? Describe the sunset, draw the ocean, put dry flowers in your notebook. I want to start this project because I hope it will make me more creative and aware of my surroundings, and I think it is a beautiful way to register my summer. 

21•5•16 | 17/100 days of productivity

Messy desk = Messy mind It’s the weekend (!) here’s to catching up on all the tv episodes I’ve missed. Hope you all are doing swell 😽 👏

How to tackle big project/assignment

“How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”

Here’s what happens with big, huge elephant projects:

We bite off more than we can chew and we get choked up.

We get lost, overwhelmed, frustrated and impatient. We want instant results, but we haven’t counted the investment or cost, and thus we lack the commitment necessary to finish right.

We’re unclear of the goal, or don’t know what results we’re working toward.

We run out of energy and time or mismanage both.

We get sidetracked and distracted, bogged down and lost in the details, minutiae as well.

We give up too soon or hang on too long.

And to sum it up: We fail. We don’t finish. The project flops. And everybody is disappointed.

Sound familiar?

On an almost weekly basis, I run into someone having the same elephant-eating problem I was once had …so I want to share how I tackle big, huge, insane projects and coach others to do the same.

Whether you’re tackling a project solo, or working on a team …doing something for yourself, or delivering it for someone else …you’re likely to be tackling the eating of an elephant.

 1. Chill out.

Take a deep breath and calm down.

At this point, you’re just stressing yourself out needlessly. Emotion and adrenaline typically make things worse. So simply taking a moment to get some composure is going to help a TON.

2. Step back and get some perspective.

Review and clarify the results you’re seeking.

Ask yourself:

What outcome / goal are you trying to achieve?

What does success look like?

What are the benefits?

If you’re delivering it for someone else – what are their expectations?

Oftentimes, simply knowing why you’re doing something helps tremendously.

3. Start breaking it into small pieces.

This is the awesome part because I see all the neat parts that I’ll get to do.

To help figure out how to dice up the elephant, ask yourself:

What’s really needed to accomplish this? People, tasks, timelines.

How can I chop it up into small digestible bites?

If  it’s still too mammoth and overwhelming, how can I chop it up further?

How long is each piece going to take?

What are the tasks I can do quickly?

What’s the most efficient way to tackle this? (Meaning which items should come first?)

If  you’re delivering it for someone else – what are their expectations? And how does it differ from your own?

Is it collaborative project? Which pieces will each person take on?

Do you need someone else’s help?

Which task(s) will make the most impact?

4. Now, review the investment and the journey. 

Which your smaller bites in mind, figure out how long the journey is really going to take … or how long you’ll be at the table eating your elephant meal. This means count the cost in terms of time, money, energy, momentum, etc.

5. Start eating the elephant. One bite at a time.

Oh, and be sure to chew your food with your mouth closed.

And with that … here is some general advice for managing big projects:

6. What if you’re overwhelmed by unknowns?

If you’ve asked yourself practical questions about how to break down your big project and you still aren’t sure how to make a plan, then you’re probably dealing with a big goal that has a lot of unknowns.

It can be hard to break something into steps when you don’t yet know what the whole “thing” is.

But just because you can’t predict the future doesn’t mean you can’t make progress. Here is how to still move forward on a goal, even when you don’t know exactly where you’ll end up or how you’ll make it to the finish line:

Give estimates with flexibility. If your project impacts other people or teams, those people will probably want to get estimates from you on when they can expect it to be done. This can be really hard to do, though, when you don’t yet know how long a project will take or what it will involve, but you don’t want to lie or give people an unrealistic deadline that you *hope* you’ll be able to achieve.

To combat this, give people as much information as you can and set deadlines where you’ll give them more information.

That way, instead of giving them a deadline that’s a complete guess, you can tell them, “Right now, I estimate this project will take about 4 weeks, but I will know more at the end of next week. I will give you an update then with a fuller plan and more concrete deadline.”

Then follow up once you have that information and a clearer picture of when you’ll be done.

Identify your unknowns. Okay, so it’s hard to know what you don’t know. But when you look at the project, you can probably find a few places where you can start planning. Where does your ability to plan stop? At that spot, that’s where your unknowns are creeping in.

To figure out what needs to happen in those unknown areas, start researching.

Has anyone on your team done something like this before? Can they tell you what they did? Can you find white papers or blog posts about other teams that have done this? Seeing other peoples’ experience can give you a clue into the unknowns.

Plan for the worst-case scenario, but don’t solve problems you don’t have yet. It’s scary to do something without knowing for sure it will work, and so often we pre-troubleshoot and think through all the possible ways something could go wrong. Which is a good thing; you want to research and plan to make sure you are making the best effort possible.

But this impulse to avoid failure can often keep us from making progress right now, because we are so worried about messing something up in the future.

If you have a task in front of you, do that task. Don’t put it off because you’re worried it might impact the outcome of some aspect of the project weeks away that you haven’t even started yet.

Instead, think through the worst-case scenarios, research the best options, and set expectations/milestones for how you’ll make sure a project is on track — but then move on. That way, you’re prepared with an outline of a plan for what you’ll do in the worst case, but you are able to spend your time right now focused on the work in front of you rather than worrying about the future.

Think about your time, not the work. We often think of big projects like puzzles; once we have all the pieces, then we can put them together and we are done. But when you’re working on a project where you don’t even know how many pieces the puzzle has, this way of thinking can hold you back.

Instead, think about your time. Look at the information you have in front of you, and think about where your hours this week are best spent. Instead of focusing on getting this or that puzzle piece done, think about progress. Where will you have the biggest impact? What is one thing you can do every day this week that will be meaningful?

Then at the end of each week, look back at what you accomplished, and use your new progress and information to formulate a plan for how you’ll spend time next week.

7. More Big, Huge, Ridiculous Project Tips:

Think of all the ways you’ll fail. Shocking advice, right? It’s good     advice, though. Know your big bottlenecks, challenges, and obstacles ahead of time. You WILL hit roadblocks, or fall into ravines, and if you don’t think about it ahead of time, you won’t know how to get around or across it.

Report in regularly. Rangers at big national parks typically ask hikers     and campers to report in as they make a big journey. Along the way,     measure and report your progress. See what’s working and what’s not, or celebrate small milestones along the way. Accountability is a very good thing, ESPECIALLY for big, huge projects. Accountability also helps us prevent blind spots.

Have deadlines and milestones. And then HIT them consistently, religiously. Don’t give yourself much slack if any. You’d be surprised how pushing just one deadline or milestone creates a snowball effect, turning into much bigger problems and delays for your project.

The final bites of the elephant are ALWAYS the hardest. When you’ve been eating the elephant for a long time, you will inevitably grow weary and burned out. But that’s when you need to push hardest … to finish the last 10% of the project and ship and deliver.

Source: 1  2

1) For questions, use “est-ce que”, or just the plain affirmative form with a question mark/rising tone.

 Où vas-tu ? (correct, but nobody actually speaks like that)

 Où est-ce que tu vas ? (much better) Tu vas où ? (most common) Partez-vous en vacances cet été ? (hello, I’m a robot)

 Est-ce que vous partez en vacances cet été ? (natural)

 Vous partez en vacances cet été ? (what I would probably say) => Note that even though I used the formal “vous” in this last example (could also be that I’m addressing multiple people, but let’s say it’s just one person), it’s still completely ok/common/natural to use these more “informal” question forms. Same goes for all the other tips below. This is how people actually speak, even in slightly more formal situations. 

2) Drop “ne” in “ne pas”

E.x. Je ne sais pas. => Je sais pas.

E.x.  Je n'ai pas faim. => J'ai pas faim.

3) Use “on” (conjugates like the third person) instead of “nous”

E.x. Nous habitons à Paris. => On habite à Paris. 

4) Shorten “tu” to t’ when the verb starts with a vowel of a “silent” H 

E.g. Tu habites où ? => T'habites où ?

5) Drop “il” in “il y a”. It turns into “y'a”

E.x.  Il y a un chat dans le jardin. => Y'a un chat dans le jardin.

E.x. Il n'y a pas de soucis. => Y'a pas de soucis. 

 These are the most important I think. Then there’s obviously vocab, with some words/contractions being more informal to varying degrees (“bouquin” for “livre”, “aprem” for “après-midi”…). 

And then, there’s pronunciation. There are a lot of sounds that can get slurred together, but I couldn’t really tell you the rules. As an example though, “je” followed by “sais” or “suis” will turn into j’, then ch if you’re really slurring.

 "Je sais pas" => “J'sais pas” => “Chaipas” (this last one is not usually written, but you will hear it) 

Some people will tell you that all these things are “incorrect” and “not proper French”, but I think that’s bullshit. You *need* to do all these things if you want to sound like a real person, and not like a textbook. Good luck!

 - with the help of a user from the HiNative App. When you have doubts about anything in particular, using HiNative is a great way to get the answers you’re looking for in a language you’re studying. 

7 March New bullet journal because I got really picky about the show-through in the Moleskine. This is a Leuchtturm 1917 and I like it much better. Got a little fancier with some of the embellishments too. 

DEAR FRENCH COMMUNITY, LISTEN UP!

If you’re studying french, or in french immersion like I am, here are some tips + resources I’ve found helpful throughout my five years of immersion. Commençons!

1. IT’S ACTUALLY OKAY TO USE GOOGLE TRANSLATE: Wait, what? I know it’s 100% against what your teachers have been telling you since forever. Mais c’est actuellement trés précis. Now, I’m not saying you should just copy and paste your english draft into google translate, copy the french translation and be done with it. That would be bad. Don’t do that, mauvais élève. Rules of using google translate:

-only use it for single words/short sentences

-double-check it in BonPatron

which leads us to:

2. USE BONPATRON: Probably my favorite french grammar site ever. The link is here. You paste your text into the text box and it corrects/ points out any errors for you. I’ve been using it forever, trust me. It has saved my ass more than a few times. 

3. USE WORDREFRENCE: Another of my faves. It’s basically the virtual version of the classic french/english dictionary. Link is here! 

4. DON’T IGNORE ACCENTS!: when I was in 7th grade I decided accents were a pain and that they didn’t make a difference anyways, so I just completely disregarded them. Worst mistake ever! Accents completely change the word! For example, ou and où have two different meanings! I know they’re a pain and can be confusing, especially if you’re typing on a computer without a french keybord. This brings us to:

5. USE THIS SITE FOR FRENCH ACCENTS ON YOUR COMPUTER: It’s a site that allows your to copy and paste french accents into your word document. 

21•5•16 | 17/100 days of productivity

Messy desk = Messy mind It’s the weekend (!) here’s to catching up on all the tv episodes I’ve missed. Hope you all are doing swell 😽 👏

hi everyone! a while ago @sophie-is-a-mess asked for a masterpost on this and i got bored today so i made this, tho it was originally intended to be an infographic but that didn’t turn out well lol oop

characteristics

prefer to see information and visualise the relationship between ideas

fast talkers

impatient and tend to interrupt

learn by seeing charts and diagrams

need quiet study time

take detailed notes

may think in pictures

use words that evoke visual images

like to sit at the front of the class

tips

use visually pleasing materials

draw or outline information, take notes and make lists

colour-code, highlight, circle and underline words in notes

make flashcards

make diagrams and charts of sentences 

make mind maps

paint mental pictures

copy what’s on the board in class

characteristics

prefer to hear information rather than reading it or havig it displayed visually

speak slowly

natural listeners

explain things well

tend to repeat things aloud

think linearly

read slowly

tips

use word association to remember facts and lines

read your textbook/notes aloud

repeat facts with eyes closed

record notes after writing them and listen to them often, e.g. on the way to/from school

make connections between points, e.g. using mind maps

teach the information to someone else

use the feynman method

record lectures

watch videos

participate in group discussions

characteristics

hands-on, experiential learners; they learn best by doing

slowest talkers

make slow decisions

learn by doing and solving real-life problems

like hands-on approaches

cannot sit still for long without getting fidgety

take breaks while studying

short attention spans

learn through trial and error

use all their senses to engage in learning

tips

study in short blocks (e.g. pomodoro method)

try to explain points 

use memory games and flashcards stand up and move around to demonstrate or explain certain points (i.e. role-playing)write things down to memorise them

take lab classes

go on field trips

join study groups

characteristics

interacting with text is more powerful for them than hearing or seeing images

prefer for information to be displayed in writing

emphasize text-based input and output

enjoy reading and writing in all forms

tips

read the book often

research online

write lists of key words

use the feynman method

read or rewrite notes repeatedly (when rewriting, put them in your own words every time)

write, on a blank sheet, everything that you can remember about a certain topic, and then use your textbook/notes to see what you missed and pinpoint the gaps in your knowledge

write ideas and principles in your own words

put diagrams, graphs, flowcharts, reactions, actions, etc. into words/statements

sources

http://lyceumbooks.com/pdf/howtoteacheffectively_typesoflearners.pdf

http://highlightcrs.tumblr.com/post/144553463988/source

https://blog.prezi.com/the-four-different-types-of-learners-and-what-they-mean-to-your-presentations-infographic/