Going Back To School/College?

The problem at the start of every year involving education, you promise yourself that this is the year you're going to make an effort, a week later, old habits die hard. I've compiled a list of things to do this year to make the most of the school year.

Vision the Bigger Picture

I really wished I had done this when I started my A-Levels. I would sit in class and completely zone out and think about unicorns. It may be hard to do the work you should do or to listen when you're bored out of your mind but think about how it could impact your future. That should, hopefully, give you the kick in the butt you need to realise that a few moments of 'torture' would be completely beneficial to how well you succeed in the future, whatever you want to do.

All Work and No Play May Turn You Into a Murderer

MAY! I'm just going off what I've seen on TV. Anyway, study hard, give 100% to your work but don't let that be who you are. Go out and enjoy yourself. These years of school may be important but we should form good memories from them. We should be able o reminisce and think about how much fun we had with our friends, no one tells stories about the fun they had with their text books. The important thing to remember is time management. That's really the key.

Don't Hesitate Asking For Help

This was the biggest problem for me. I never asked for help, even when I felt that I wanted to crawl into a whole and be left alone. There's no shame in asking for help, no one will judge you. No one understands everything straight away, sometimes all it takes is for a sentence to be reworded or rephrased and boom, you've just passed your Maths exam!

Whatever Happens, It's Not The End of the World

Failing an exam doesn't mean your world is going to collapse. There is never, in life, a point of no return. Never. You can always bounce back with the right attitude. If you fail, so what, you'll try again or you'll find another way to get what you want. My teacher always reassured my class that if we fail an exam, it's not going to define who we are in the future. Exams aren't as important as they are made to be. Sure, they are important, but your whole future shouldn't result on what you wrote on a piece of paper.

Exam Tips

It's coming to summer and the smell of exams is in the air. You may be thinking who am I to tell or even suggest how you should study and what to do with your exams? I'm currently in my first year of a-levels and personally, it's not going too great. I said I was going to revise 1 hour and 30 minutes ago. Instead, I watched video game reviews. So since I'm such a lazy-waste-of-space in college, I think I have enough experience to tell you what NOT to do, rather than what to do.

• Cram

Speaking from experience, I've gotten better results when I've crammed for exams. This obviously isn't for everyone so if you haven't received positive results in the past, this is a no-no. I've found if I revise a few weeks or so before the exam, the knowledge kind of sinks out, but if I cram, it's all fresh. What I'm definitely not saying is leave looking over your notes to the day before, I just mean don't do your hardcore revision weeks in advance, it's just gonna come out of the other end....

 

• Do your best in your first sets of exams

I, crap-ily, got pretty bad grades for my January exams. Now I'm resitting all of them plus my new exams. That's 8 bloody exams. Guys, just do yourself a favour and stop playing on Sims. Just open your damn book and study. Give your all now, you'll thank yourself later when you've got one success under the belt.

•  Give yourself a break

Again, let's take a little trip down January revision memory lane. I spent most of my time revising, all that revision drained all the fun outta me and as a result I became quite depressed. What I've found in my second round is that I'm far more happier when I don't live and breathe revision. Back in January, I genuinely considered dropping out of college because I didn't see the point in anything, exams, university, jobs etc. You don't want to be in that place, it could ultimately ruin your life (melodramatic?)

• Workout

I read an article that suggested that working out in advance before your exams could help your performance. Moreover, it's a huge stress reliever. Basically there's no downside to this. All that can happen are good things so you have no excuse. Don't try to give me the 'I don't have enough time' crap, I know you can make time!

• Get motivated

Pretty obvious thing but it can be shocking how easy it is to forget why you're doing the exams. When I'm revising and I'm in a 'I don't give a tiny rats ass' mood, I remind myself why I'm revising and how this is going to affect my future! You can even watch people opening their results on YouTube, it seems strange but it makes you want to do well.

Those are all the ones I can think of but if you have anymore don't hesitate to post it in the comments.

GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR EXAMS!

Thanks for reading!

xoxo

11 Ways To Make Life Happier!

 

Everyone seeks out to be happier in life, and why wouldn't you? Below I conjured up a list of things I believe will improve everyone's perspective on life!

1) Stop Caring What Other People Think

Easier said than done eh? How I put this tip into action is by simply saying 'why do I care what other people think' when I start to worry that others may judge me. Simple but effective...well for me.

2) Breathe Before You Get Angry

When we're angry we say things and do things in the heat of the moment. To prevent severe regret, before lashing out, take a breath and count to 10. In as little as 10 seconds you'll rationalise your actions and prevent some possible problems.

3) Write 5 Things You're Grateful For Every Night

...or every day, depending on your preference. This works especially well when you're just a little disgruntled and feeling the blues, writing down just 5 things you're grateful for puts everything in perspective and makes you feel happier and more grateful about life.

4) Don't Judge Others

As said in Mean Girls, making fun of someone else or judging someone else won't make your life better. Just ditch the bitchiness and you'll see yourself becoming a nicer, happier person!

5) Do What You Love

Life's too short to waste it doing something to make someone else happy rather than yourself. Obviously, I'm not saying stop feeling compassion and just look out for yourself, what I'm saying is don't strive in life to make others happy and disregard what you want which leads me onto my next point...

6) Help Others

A bit paradoxical with 5) but you need to find the line. Helping others makes you feel like a good person. I volunteered at a charity and just knowing you're helping a cause makes you think 'hey I'm a decent person' and I think everyone wants to be at the least, a decent person.

7) Read

Reading is something you can't mimic. Watching movies is great and all but reading books brings things to a new level. The level of description and emotion put into novels can't be portrayed on television, it just can't be done. And I don't believe anyone who says 'I don't like to read', that's impossible. That's like saying I don't like to watch movies. It's just about finding the right preference.

8) Be Healthy

A healthy colon is a happy mind! I've seen a drastic improvement on my attitude towards life when I began to run regularly and eat healthier. There's no reason not to be healthy, it gives you everything you would want.

9) Meditation

I haven't tried a regular meditation routine but it is highly recommended. I've read that meditation is a soul cleanser, it relaxes you and if you do it enough, it will bring you to the highest level of meditation, 'feeling at peace with the earth'. Sounds quite gnarly.

10) Explore

What fun is life if you can't explore the world. Even exploring your city is enough. What I would recommend is take a bus or train anywhere, don't plan it, and just see where it takes you. I've done this before. I just got on a bus and let the day unravel. It's such a spontaneous thing, you just never know what you'll find or who you'll meet.

11) Be Happy Alone

When I was younger, I didn't have a lot of friends which forced me to find entertainment by myself. This is a great trait to have because it makes you more independent and happy with yourself. I love to be alone, don't get me wrong, my friends are great, but when you're alone, there's no 'guidelines' as such. You can do anything you want and you don't have to cater to other people's needs. So learn it and love it!

Thanks for reading and tell me what you think!

xoxo