Career Chasse

Studying? Take Care of YOU with 4 Hints + 1 Treat!

Get 8 hours of sleep. One lesson I learned my first year as an undergraduate is that you are better off to get a good night’s rest than to stay up cramming. Your mind will function better, and you’re not going to remember those chapters you first read at 1 a.m. Close the book, turn off the computer and get some shut eye instead.

Eat breakfast. And, after you have slept well, start your day off right with a healthy breakfast. During my week of finals, I regularly got up and ate a hot breakfast before I took an exam. My mother, a physician, used to harp on me that I always needed to eat that first meal of the day. “It’s called breakfast for a reason, she said. “You are breaking your fast. You need to get your metabolism pumping.” And, while you are eating, make your choices healthy. Have some protein!

De-stress. As you allow time for studying, make sure you build time in your schedule for some stress busting. What do you do to relieve stress? When I was studying for finals, I would take a break and go play the baby grand piano that was positioned in the lobby of my residence hall. Playing Fur Elise and Moonlight Sonata along with other pieces took me to a calmer place. If I didn’t play the piano, I ran 3 miles with some of my good friends. Get outside, breathe the fresh air. Take a walk around the Duck Pond or the Drill Field. Go to McComas and work out your frustrations. Move! Which brings me to my next tip…

Exercise. Play Ultimate Frisbee or Quidditch. Attend a yoga or zumba class. Go lift weights. Bike the Huckleberry Trail. Run to campus from Hethwood. After the grind of studying those awful financial ratios or writing that huge history research paper, your mind and body will feel more refreshed with a break for a workout. Your brain and your body will perform better for your next exam or paper with some exercise added to your routine.

Treat yourself after you remembered all those ratios or finished that paper. Make an A on your first exam? Celebrate with a burger at Mike’s Grill: a mahi mahi taco from Cabo Fish Taco; a hike to the Cascades; a pedicure at Polished; or a new haircut at Inside Out Salon. Take a break to celebrate your success and pat yourself on the back.

A final piece of advice comes from my favorite undergraduate professor and mentor, Dr. Carl Stern, an economics professor: When you leave an exam, think about all the answers you got right, rather than obsessing over all the ones you didn’t know. After I heard this advice, I strived to follow it. His suggestion really helped me feel better coming out of exams. Try it! What other tips do you have? Please share!