5 Tips for Surviving Exams
With finals looming on the horizon, crunch time starts now! If that sentence makes your palms a little more sweaty than you’d care to admit, perhaps some tactics to get your kaboose back on the tracks will get your brain from loco-overload and into locomotion-motivation.
1. Remind Yourself Why You're Here
College is a big deal. Refresh your brain on why a college degree is important for you. Did you come here as a first-generation college student to set the trend for your family? Or was it your passion for learning more about your major? Perhaps there is a certain dream career that fills your future with joy? Whatever it is, remind yourself you’re here for a reason: graduate with a degree. And maybe the Lakerbowls, too.
2. Call your family and friends
Sometimes some tough lovin’ is the best solution to get yourself geared up and ready to hit the books. Shoot your dad a text or call your mom — video chatting with someone you trust and venting about your study stresses might help you feel more reassured and ready to emotionally and physically tackle the work you need to do.
3. Eat, Eat, EAT!
Food is love, food is life. A nutritional diet as you grind away the hours at Mary Idema Pew could be just the solution for your exam-woes. Diets rich in antioxidants can clear your skin, and diets rich in vitamins B and D will give you a little pep in your step and a more natural boost in energy rather than the caffeine route. A clear complexion coupled with a natural enthusiasm could be a recipe for disaster — disastrous for your professor that is, because you are TEARING up that essay!
4. Slow and steady might actually win the race
Even if you find your engine running out of steam, a slow pace is better than no pace. Read your textbook for 30 minutes, and then watch a 30 minute episode on Netflix. Review your study guide for 30 minutes, and then take a walk around the arboretum for 30 minutes. Rinse, repeat.
5. Distracted? Relocate!
Your biggest struggle may be fighting off procrastination and distractions. If you’re suffering from the ailment of avoidance, then perhaps a new environment is just what the doctor ordered. Move to your favorite coffee shop, or find a nook in the Kirkhof Center so you can slurp a smoothie and keep studying. The important takeaway here is to find a space in which you are familiar with and comfortable so that you can stop focusing on what’s going on around you and burrow your face in the books.
The one time when hearing “Chug, chug, chug” is beneficial is when it’s your inner voice convincing you to keep chugging along the study tracks. So, push forth Lakers!