#annabaestudying

26.5.20

new study space!

❝what exactly are you here for?❞

❝to see with eyes unclouded by hate.❞

i recently had the pleasure of seeing my first studio ghibli movie: princess mononoke! the art style was so beautiful and i loved the message that there is not always a clear villain or hero— more than one cause can be just 🐺 (featuring a gorgeous san/ashitaka illustration by @sorscia)

hello !! something that I don’t see talked about enough on studyblr is the balance between work and study, which seems mad given how many of us are handling paid jobs at the same time as school or college work. 

I’m definitely not an expert, but I’ve had my own part-time job for over a year now whilst also doing a levels, so I’ve picked up on a few bits and pieces that can help!!

PRIORITISING

prioritising !! is !! so important !!!!

for a lot of us, the priority is study, and unless you urgently need the money or you’re financially independent, I’m guessing this is the case.

so make sure your work fits around your study, rather than vice versa.

for some people, this means limiting work hours. for others, it’s using your free, non-working time more wisely. whatever suits you, man

ultimately, just don’t overwhelm yourself with one thing or the other, and if you’re feeling a little swamped, don’t be afraid to reorganise some things.

if they know you’re a student, a lot of bosses are far more lenient than you’d think; there’s no harm in asking for a change in hours or a day off for college/school work. be polite and explain your reasoning and you might be surprised

at the same time, though, remember that a job is a committment

if you’re working a paid job, its not fair on your employer (or the person who covers your shifts) if you’re asking for a day off every other week. just keep it in mind

NO ZERO DAYS

i see a lot of posts on here talking about the importance of having a ‘no-work day’ every week to avoid burnout

and as  much as I understand that and I fully agree that you need to avoid burnout,,,, sometimes that’s just not realistic when you’re both working and studying.

instead, I prefer the ‘no zero days’ approach.

all that this really means is that you don’t have a single day where you don’t work at all on your studies, regardless of how much little work you do put in.

say you’re working and studying monday to saturday, and sunday is your ‘off’ day

that’s great! chill out! have some fun! see some friends!

but spend at least thirty minutes on some of your studies.

thirty minutes. that’s it. 30 minutes out of 24 hours. 

but thirty minutes is better than nothing at all.

the idea of ‘no zero days’ is that you’re getting something done, even if not a lot. the reason I like it is because it makes sure you’re having your own time to relax and not study or work (so that you’re not getting burnt out), whilst also making sure you’re keeping on top of important things.

PLAN PLAN PLAN

PLANNING IS SO HELPFUL OK HEAR ME OUT

im not talking fancy bujos and wall planners (unless that’s your kind of thing in which case you do you)

but just !!! having a basic idea of what you’re doing and when !!!

even if you have set work times every week, keeping track of when you’re working (and, in turn, when you have time to study and be in lessons) can make all the difference.

if you know what time you have free, and know what times you need to be working, it can give you just enough pressure to actually get stuff done when you’re studying.

if you’re not into planners and calendars and all that (personally my planner is my saviour buuut), grab a piece of paper on a sunday night and draw out a rough timetable for the week. put in your work hours. put in any pre-planned ‘fun’ events (social, meeting friends, parties, etc), and then put in your study hours.

having just a liiiiittle bit of structure can make all the difference!

USE YOUR TIME PRODUCTIVELY

this is,, kind of building off the last point i guess

if you’re working as a student, its v important that you make the most of your set study time, so you don’t get stuck behind what you had planned to do

some people like to write mini to-do lists at the beginning of the day, or have a rough plan of what they want to get done over the course of a week

whatever your method, make sure you know what you’re going to be doing in a study session. if you sit down to study and have to spend twenty minutes figuring out just what you’re going to do, you’re already wasting time.

within that, know ! how ! you ! study !!!!!!!

if you don’t find rewriting notes helpful, don’t spent an hour rewriting notes god dammit

if you think flash cards are super helpful, MAKE  AND USE SOME FLASH CARDS.

also, screw aesthetics

this kind of applies to all students, but when your work limits you to a certain amount of study time per week, there’s no point in using all this calligraphy and washi tape and fancy ink unless it’s going to help you get that information into your brain.

GET SOME DOWN TIME

oh look its the most important point on here

make !! sure !! you’re getting !! a rest !!!!!

you should be doing this anyway, but sometimes when you’re caught up with both studying and working it can be hard to remember that you don’t have to be busy all the time.

see friends. spend time with your family. watch a movie. read a book.

if you don’t get some down time, you’re going to burn out. and at that point, neither your work or your study will be as good as it could be, anyway.

your mental health has to come before all else, and if you’re feeling overwhelmed (or even if you’re not), please make sure you’re giving yourself breaks and doing the things you want to do.

[1/100 days of productivity] - finally joining the trend

I finally got my hands on some Tombow brush tip markers and a range of fine liners - so here is my first fancy spread using them!! (also enjoy a photo of the dragon from the airport in Wellington - I haven’t seen lord of the rings so I don’t know its name, I’m such a fake kiwi)

HELLO FELLOW CONQUERORS! (Hype as always y'all, where’s that confetti I ordered?)

I've finally had the awareness and time to go in deep about what I want Conquer and this blog to stand for. If you've checked out the website version, you might've noticed the tiny box on the right, proclaiming the genres Thestudyfeels has.

Hilariously, it has everything. Travel, fitness, academics, work… EVERYTHING. And yet, I don't feel like it does.

*goes into rant mode* Too often, creators make the mistake of travelling ten different paths. Taking up five different projects that aren’t even related to one another. Doing twenty different things just for the sake of it. I made the same mistake as well, but here I am, ready to rectify it.

You see, I don't want to be remembered as some blogger who talked about life, sometimes about productivity, and every now and then about health. I want to be THE blogger who talked about life, gave enormous amounts of value through each post about productivity, and truly was able to create lifestyle systems for people which worked flawlessly.

... And that brings me to this. Last night, I sat down to perceive what Thestudyfeels would really give to you, my reader. Initially, I thought it would be difficult to dial into what Conquer should stand for - but it turned out to be surprisingly easy. As soon as I began, I was instantly like, “Life, Lifestyle and Work. That's it.” Probably because in my heart, I already knew that this is what resonates most with me. And hopefully, it will with you too.

Life —

I LOVE talking about life. It simply has so much to offer! There's your strong, impenetrable mindset to develop, a fearless heart to forge, bursting out of The Bubble Trap, building a great Conquer Circle, finding the right mentors… everything that's stunning (and shiny) which will create the awareness that you need in order to better your life. In this, I hope to offer the right awareness and help you get your facts right on what life's honestly about, straying away from the myths society's tryna sell to you.

Lifestyle —

Another great area to focus on! It is one thing to know what's right, and a completely different one, to implement the said right. So many people read the books, follow the blogs, go to the seminars but still feel like nothing ever changes. To prevent that and help you get your life back on track, Lifestyle is all about handcrafting a life worth remembering. This is about designing practical ways to be happier, or changing up that effed up sleep schedule, or setting up conqueror worthy habits and rituals. All to create a life that is truly magnificent.

Work —

To quote one of the biggest influences of my life, a man I have an insane amount of love and respect for, Robin, “An idea does NOT work if you're not willing to do the work.” Simply put, dreams don't come true unless you get your ass to work. This is something I have the most experience with, as a student, and more importantly, a dreamer. I want to give you tactics to generate insane amounts of focus, everyone's favourite, i.e. ‘working smarter not harder’, and being crazy productive to actually catch those dreams.

So there you have it! Life, Lifestyle, and Work. Truly comes to a full cycle if you're a conqueror looking to go deep instead of being shallow and simply “testing the waters” for your entire existence. Let’s build a life that, when you look back, moves you to tears (in all the right ways, that is).

As always, I hope you're killing the game, being of service and being unreasonably kind. I'm sending all my love your way. Stay strong and conquer life, you conqueror.