We all know the feeling. It’s the second semester, you’ve already been accepted to your dream school or landed the perfect job and you’re starting to feel your motivation decline. Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us! Here are a few tips that you can use to combat “senioritis” this year so you can finish strong.
1. Keep Track of Your Tasks
The best way to stay on top of your assignments is to keep track of them. Whether you use a pen and paper planner (my personal preference) or a to-do list app, it is crucial to stay on top of everything that needs to get done. I also like to put down a rough time estimate of how long I think each of my projects or assignments will take. This helps you plan them into your daily schedule and block out time to get stuff done.
2. Break Down Bigger Tasks to Make Them More Manageable
Some tasks, like studying for your DECA role-play, are longer projects that take a lot of time. Try breaking these down into bite-sized chunks so that they can easily be tackled. For example, break your role-play down into doing a practice test and a set number of performance indicators to study each week. This will make what was once a large and daunting task easy to plan and complete.
3. Create a Zero-space Schedule of Each Day
My all-time favorite productivity technique is to create a zero-space schedule of each day in your life. To do this, list out the time in your day from when you wake up to when you go to sleep. Fill in any meetings, classes, sports or other mandatory commitments. Then, use your estimates of time needed to complete each task for the day and fill in your schedule so that there is no space left. Make sure to plan some time for leisure and meals as well!
4. Keep Track of your Purpose
The largest problem with senioritis is that it can be difficult to remember why you committed to all of your extracurriculars and activities. Focus on your purpose and goals to help you remember. Try writing down everything you are involved in and list your purpose for each activity. With a vision for the future in sight, you will be able to find the motivation to get your work done and finish the year in stride!
