One Day, You Will Be Able To Say ‘i Made It.’ And Until Then, I Really Want You To Hold On To Whatever

you know what? go to your local library.

nobody cares if you just want to read Twitter with the free wifi. in fact we’re ecstatic you’re there.

don’t be afraid to touch the books. hell, taking them off the shelf and leaving them on shelving carts is one of the main ways the library counts usage and foot traffic, so don’t reshelve them yourself and don’t be afraid of looking at them!

most libraries now allow covered drinks, and many have special areas where you’re allowed to bring something to eat. have your lunch there, it’s quiet!

lovely large tables for crafts or art? they have you covered!

magazines and periodicals so you can read the newest events or pick up a new recipe? check!

you can even just watch a DVD if you have the appropriate portable screen and courtesy headphones.

GO to the library. LOVE the library. USE the library. you already paid for it!!

things I wish i would have known my first year of University

1) Make an outline for your papers. it doesn’t have to be detailed but having one will help you keep on track when writing. it will only take you a few minutes to brainstorm one. 

2) always carry a spare charger and a backup battery for your phone. honestly, our phones are an extension of us now, so nothing is scarier than when it dies halfway through your class. a backup battery and a charger are always handy.

3) set smaller deadlines and stick to them. you might flounder if you decide to have your 2000 word essay all done and edited for March 14. but you might have an easier time deciding to have 500 words written by March 8, 1000 words by March 10, 1500 words by March 11, 2000 words by March 13, and to edit it on the 14th. these smaller deadlines have really helped me to get my work done and to not to stress about deadlines. splitting up my assignments into smaller chunks makes it more manageable. 

4) email your professors if you have questions. or go to their office when they’re in. don’t sit there in confused silence, it won’t help. 

5) Do practise Self-care and take breaks. these don’t always have to be full days off with a spa day. it can be having a bubble bath after studying for hours, or watching a movie that makes you laugh after finishing an essay. or just making sure you're eating healthy and drinking water. 

6) do put important dates in your calendar. weather its a psychical calendar, or one on your phone/ computer. I have all my major dates on my computer laptop, it helps when I am studying and wondering when I have an exam or need to remember when to hand in a paper. 

7) always have a highlighter, a pencil, a pen, and spare paper. you never know when you’re going to have a pop quiz or an activity in class. 

8) reach out to friends and spend time with them/ your family. people tend to isolate themselves during exam/paper/midterm season. while you definitely need to study, you also need to have social connections. make a study date at your library or even get a coffee with a friend. 

☁️ 10 tips on studying when your motivation’s nowhere to be found

i got an ask about this yesterday and decided to turn my reply into a post because having trouble focusing when you’re super unmotivated is really common, so i thought more people might find this helpful :) buckle up kiddos, this is gonna be a long one!

1. i want you to remember that this is a universal experience.

every student out there struggles like hell sometimes, and that’s completely normal; you’re not a machine and that means you can’t possibly churn out work 24/7 without burning out. so try not to beat yourself up too much okay, you’re doing great!

2. take a deep breath and identify the reason you’re feeling like this

are you burnt out because of stress or overworking yourself? are you overwhelmed by the amount of tasks on your plate? is there a particular assignment or exam scaring you to the point where you don’t want to start studying? these are all normal reasons for lack of motivation and knowing the why will help you figure out the how - you gotta know the problem to solve it.

3. i know you feel like you’re months behind, but start small

small achievements accumulate. repeat this sentence to yourself daily, write it on a sticky note and keep it on the wall above your desk (it’s exactly what i did). break up daunting tasks into smaller ones; got a billion formulae to know by heart? memorise 3 every day (you’ll have memorised more than 20 by the end of the week!). got a long chapter to study? divide it into smaller chunks and just focus on 1-3 pages a day. slow and steady, you can do it

Seguir leyendo

Notetaking

Sound Note - take notes while you record audio

Evernote - notetaking that syncs across platforms

Paper 53 - minimal notetaking that syncs

Microsoft OneNote - collaboration and syncing, best for Office users

Google Keep - jot things down, best for Google suite users

Notability - take notes and annotate PDFs

Mindly - create mind maps

Day One - a digital journal

Flash Cards

Quizlet - the quintessential flash card app

StudyBlue - another commonly used app

Cram - best for its “cram mode”

Eidetic - uses spaced repetition for effective memorization

Planner 

My Study Life - schedules, tasks, reminders, and more

StudyCal - keeps track of tasks, exams, and grades

24me - automated reminders and event planning

iStudiez - schedule and prioritized task list

Google Calendar - a calendar, best for Google users

Glass Planner - a calendar and to do list with incredible functionality

To Do List

Clear - organized to-do and reminders

MinimaList - simple to-do and focus timer

Trello - collaborative project organizer

Todoist - clean and functional task manager

Default notes app on your phone

Time Management

Forest - plant trees by staying focused

Pomotodo - pomodoro timer with to-do list

Timeglass - custom timers

Tide - pomodoro with white noise

Alarmy - forces you out of bed 

Pillow - smart alarm that tracks sleep cycles

Productivity

Workflow - automate tasks

Habitica - turn your habits into an RPG

Continuo - simple, colorful activity tracking

Freedom - block distracting apps

Free Learning

Coursera - free MOOCs

TED - listen to Ted Talks

Duolingo - language learning

Memrise - spaced repetition language vocabulary

Khan Academy - free video lessons

Ambient Noise

8tracks - curated playlists

Spotify - online music streaming

Coffitivity - cafe ambience

Noisli - background sound generator

Rain Rain - rain sounds

Binaural - binaural beats

Health

Rockin Ramen - recipes based on ramen

MealBoard - meal planning

Lifesum - healthy eating

Stop Breath And Think - mindfulness meditation

Pacifica - mental health management

Sworkit - personalized video workouts

Waterlogged - hydration tracker

Reference

WolframAlpha - Google on steroids

Oxford Dictionary - all of English at your fingertips

RefMe - citation generator

PhotoMath - solve math problems by taking a photo

Mathway - step by step math help

Desmos - free graphing calculator

Wikipedia - not the best source, but it’s handy

Miscellaneous 

Companion - stay safe when walking alone

Mint - money management

Toshl - finance manager

Tiny Scanner - scan documents

400 witchy resources 🌿💛

you like magic and witchcraft? you like the occult? maybe spirituality? hell yeah; well get ready for a discord server filled with almost 400 high quality books, texts, blogposts, apps, and podcasts of endless witchcraft and occultism

the server and its content is constantly expanding - with new channels being added for new topics and texts as more gets added on our weekly schedule; feel free to join us here 👉📓

Source: @vikkichu

 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall - November 9, 1989.

How to prepare for a new semester/year:

So as you all know I’ve been back to uni for about two weeks now and I was NOT feeling it (to say the very least). So here is what I did to get out of that crappy omg I can’t believe school’s back mood:

Clean your room: Back to school shopping is a huge deal for me but personally I like to start by cleaning my room, that includes closet, desk .. etc. Not only does this give you kind of a fresh start but also you end up figuring out exactly what you have and don’t have so you buy way less stuff (and save more money)

And while you’re at it stop hoarding: I’ve had books just sitting there for nearly four years that I haven’t touched (hello histology), same goes for clothes. Get rid of the things you know you don’t use. If you haven’t used them in a year chances are you won’t magically change your mind and start using them. You can sell them or give them away.

Don’t throw away half used notebooks: This annoys me soooo much. Cut out the pages you’ve written in and RECYCLE them. Less is more people. You don’t have to use them for school, I use those for writing down workouts or tracking what I eat, making shopping lists, goals or whatever I feel like writing (so people won’t see you with the same notebook from last year, they probably won’t notice anyway but if that’s your excuse here you go) ALSO: For clothes that you like but are too long, too big or whatever get them tailored! Don’t throw those away too.

Now that we’ve decluttered, make a list of what you need: Tailor this to your schedule as much as possible. If you have long days at uni with a significant amount of walking maybe invest in comfy shoes, if you feel like a certain notebook would work really well for a certain class get it, if you know you’ll be carrying a lot of stuff around and don’t have a proper backpack get one. Write down everything you need before you go to the store.

Figure out what you’ll do regarding your meals: Do you have enough good quality tupperware? Do you have all the groceries? Watch a few videos on meal prepping and have a set list of quick and healthy meals that suit you and your schedule and your diet.

Optimize your study space: I’m not saying make it all white and aesthetically pleasing (unless that’s your thing), just make sure it’s a good environment for you to be productive. Figure out if you need to make any changes to it before school starts.

If you can rearrange the furniture in your room: You’d be surprised at how much this affects your mood, you don’t have to buy new stuff to feel renovated for back to school.

Take a look at all of your classes and try to work out a daily (& study) routine: SUPER IMPORTANT, before school starts try to plan out what your weeks will look like, what you’ll do for certain gaps (for example do you have enough time to go study off campus or get a workout in), which resources you’ll use for every class, how are you going to commute, what kind of notes you’ll take for every class ..etc. Distribute your workload evenly throughout the week (so days when you go home early, allocate more study time and vice versa)

Lurk at studyblrs and studygrams: or even start one, this community is super motivating (pretty sure you already know that)

One last pampering session: This is very very optional and not for everyone but I personally get a hair treatment done before uni so that I don’t spend as much time doing my hair in the morning. Same goes for body hair removal, face masks …etc. It just makes me feel like a new woman 💁🏼‍♀️

since my writing post was received pretty well, i though i’d make other, to give some insight on the racism in the film industry and why it’s still a big problem now as it was in the past.