Many, many moons ago, I wrote an article here on Gearfire about balance being the key to success as a student. One thing I never really went over though, is how to achieve that balance. I was young, and didn’t really know what to say on the topic. So, I spent many, many hours over the past many, many moons, doing my own personal research on how one goes about walking the middle path. At this point, I’d say that Aristotle would be quite proud of me.I film a weekly webshow for my own website, a self titled blog called A.Y. Daring. I write to young entrepreneurs, visionaries and lifestyle artists to inspire them, encourage them, and remind them of their purpose and goals. The show is called The A.Y. Daring Show. (I like to keep things simple and straightforward with naming.) This week’s episode was about how to achieve the balance I was talking about earlier, based on all the research I’ve been doing. It summarizes all the themes in all the works I’ve read into three key points, an is presented in less than 10 minutes. And since it directly relates to my earlier article, I want to share it with you guys and share these themes on Gearfire. Behold.

So in that episode, I discussed the three themes that I picked up on in my research. For a little more of an explanation, or if you can’t turn on your volume to watch it right now:

1) You have to make time for the things that matter to you.This is everything you hear about planning and prioritizing. As in, doing things now, making a study schedule, doing readings on time, etc. There’s nothing new to say here. Except that planning and prioritizing are both learned skills that require practise. I’d say you should give yourself a full term to break all the old habits of your past. If you’re not well on your way towards good study habits and learning skills by the end of the term (you be the judge of that!) then you’re not trying hard enough to make time for the things that matter, and a different strategy is in order.

2)  You have to learn to say no. This means letting go of you’re ego and admitting you can’t do it all. This also means that, to everything you say “yes”, you must commit yourself to it wholeheartedly and be honest when your whole heart isn’t enough to hold your attention or keep you motivated. I’m talking to you, girl-who’s-on-11-different-commitees-but-is-only-serious-about-two! And you too guy-who’s-only-going-to-law-school-to-impress-people!

3)  Making time for yourself. This is the theme behind all the things you read in the yoga and spirituality and beauty sections of the bookstore and what “The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People” talks about in the chapter about “sharpening the saw”. It’s why I spend so much time doing my hair, nails and makeup each morning. As I like to say “burnouts don’t make billions” as in, if you don’t take time to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labour, all your gardening efforts will be for naught. You get my metaphor.So now, go pour yourself a glass of champagne, run yourself a bubble bath, and sit int he tub for a while, thinking about what’s important to you, and what’s not, and how you’re going to do your priorities justice.

Question? Comments? Praise? Don’t forget to comment and tell me what you think!

So, my questions to you to get the conversation rolling:

1) What’s the one thing you always make time for each day, and why?

2) How do you say no politely?

3) What’s you’re favourite way to unwind at the end of the day?

My responses:

1) I always make time for makeup and doing my nails. Always. If you ever meet me in the street, and I’m not made up and my nails look ragged, feel free to ask my why my life is falling apart at the seams, as that would be the only thing that would keep me from looking my absolute best. I just do it for no other reason than the fact that I enjoy it. I can’t draw to save my life, but I can make a masterpiece with a tube of liquid eyeliner and some lipgloss, you know?

2) I have no clue! But I have learned that if someone asks you for help with something, and you don’t have time to help them, referring them to someone who could is a really great way to absolve yourself of the guilt!

3) At the end of each day, I unwind by drinking green tea and writing in my journal. I’ve started reading again too, which is helping me sleep better. I used to watch television like an addict, but then I stopped randomly and replaced evening screen time with a book. I feel like such an old person, snuggling up in my bed with tea and a digestive cookie (both of which I bring to bed with me) and a book, but it helps me sleep like lullaby.

First of all, this post isn’t about HOW TO powernap. It is about how to USE a powernap. You probably all know already how to powernap (or supercharge nap, whatever you call it). Probably not the coffee trick, but I will keep that for later. Do you also know how to USE the powernap? ‘What do you mean, you just take a nap right when you are feeling tired?’ Indeed. But not only when you are feeling tired.

Big problem coming up!

Ok, your paper due date is in a couple of days and of course you haven’t started yet. Stress is coming up: ‘Only 3 more days and so much to do and I have to go exercising and I have to go to my parents and I have to go to school and this and that.’ Stop. Make a schedule, write it down. The first step to get order in your head. Then you start to brainstorm about the paper. Where is it about, how are you going to write it, write everything down. And then..

Take a nap.

Take a nap? I’m stressed and I have so much to do! Of course you have, but if you take a nap, you can process all the information you gathered. All the stress, all the brainstorm things all the planning stuff. Everything gets processed. You will wake up as a better person, as a more ‘in control’ person.But there is one more problem, people tend to stay awake when they are stressed. You need to calm down first. This is why ‘Winnie the Pooh’ is always next to my bed. Just read one story, drink coffee and set your alarm half an hour ahead and have your powernap.

So next time you are stressed, get everything out of your head on paper, take a nap and feel better. Good luck.

This is a post by Stefan Knapen from StudySuccessful.com, a blog about studying successful. Stefan is a med school student from the Netherlands who likes to experiment with study tactics and with everything which comes with studying!

I have 2 weekend, 3 weeks and 3 blue Post-Its until my first exam. Yes- 3 blue Post-Its. See:

My first exam is the first blue blue Post-It in the third row, and there are three blue Post-Its before it. The green Post-Its are the weekends I have to study (far right), and the yellow ones are days where I don’t currently have any event scheduled that will require my mental or physical energy. (I apologize for the blurriness. Walls are surprisingly difficult to photograph!)

Why all the Post-Its? Because I woke up on Saturday morning in a cold sweat, panicked about everything I knew I had to do, but was completely unable to conceptualize how much time I had to do it all. Everything was written down, but I couldn’t turn the words on the paper in my day-timer into anything that made events clear in my mind. It’s my very last exam set of high school (I’m graduating afterwards!) and I’ve been feeling/putting a lot of pressure on myself to go out with a bang. But I wasn’t anticipating the high blood pressure that my personal expectations would bring. So I took 10 deep breaths and tried to figure out how to get organized so I can maximize my productivity in preparation for my exams.

When it comes to my world, I like three things:

• lists
• colour
• Post-It notes
• and Tina Fey

Okay, so that 4 things, but lets pretend it’s 3. So, I combined all of these things and made a Post-It calendar. Actually, it’s not a full calendar of the month, but I leave on June 26 for a 6 week vacation travelling the other side of the planet, so I didn’t bother with the rest of the days. The day my plane takes off is the last thing I’ve written:

I like this idea because I can see at a glance when everything is, as opposed to flipping through pages. I do have a month-at-a-glace page in my planner, but it had gotten messy with “maybe-happenings” and “not-sures.”  I applied the GTD principle of only putting in concrete events. For each of the days I have an exam, I also wrote the time and place so I won’t forget. It helps to keep this from becoming another ambiguous list of things that may-or-may not occur so you then have to spend more energy sorting it in your mind. Whew, that last sentence was a mouthful!

This calendar is on the wall beside my computer, where I notice it every time I look up. So when I’ve been spending too much time on Facebook, out of the corner of my eye, I notice everything I have to do, and I log off :

This calendar is easy to replicate for yourself, using any colour combination you wish.

And also, since I’m using this to track school work, I put in fun events too, so I don’t forget that life isn’t a 24/7 study session. Like the day of my tattoo appointment:

It’s something to look forward to.

So tell me, what’s your strategy for conquering the mental clutter that exams bring?

Image via WikipediaI’m nearing the end of the first semester of my last year of high school, and the other day I had an existential crisis, which is just business as usual for me. That particular nonsense is over now, but it did give me an opportunity to look back on the past few months, and reflect on what I’ve learned. The big secret key to high school success still stands. You must balance your life to be truly happy. Work some, play some. Study some, watch cartoons some. But there’s a little more to add to the list of overall “Things to keep in mind to retain your sanity.” In fact, I have 10 more things to add to the list! This is everything I wish someone had sat me down to tell me way back in September, exactly how I wish they would have told me. This isn’t another how to guide. It’s a literary pick-me-up.

Know thyself.  This is the “big picture” stuff- all the questions you never stop answering. But it will help you one thousand-fold if you at least have a vague idea. What do you want to be when you grow up? What do you want out of your life? Why do you want it? What is your definition of happiness? What is your definition of success? What are your values and principles? What do you refuse to compromise on? (Your integrity, hopefully!) In fact, knowing what you don’t want can actually be just as helpful as knowing what you do want, because it can help you figure out what to avoid. And if you avoid all the “icky” stuff, you can often land right in the good stuff! Is knowing thyself easy? Most certainly not. But the fun part of life is figuring it out!

Your accomplishments mean nothing if you’re too sleep deprived to enjoy them. This goes back to the Big Secret Key. Balance my friends, balance. If you’re really, truly honest with yourself, are you a) only taking on as much as you can handle and b) using your time wisely? No? Well then that’s a chance to improve! The amount of information out on the Internet on how to improve your personal productivity is exhaustive. But they all basically say the same 3 things. 1) Slow down. 2) Relax. 3) Only do what’s essential, ie focus. Am I simplifying it by huge amounts? Yes. But that’s because I’m only saying the essential!

Get involved. To a certain point. You are much more useful to others, and at peace with yourself if you are really good at one thing, rather than sort of okay/mediocre at fifty things. Quality over quantity.

Volunteer outside of school. Why? Because volunteering is good for your health, and it’s important to give back. I don’t really need to explain the importance of community service, do I? It’s just good citizenship! Giving back is a way to renew yourself, or “Sharpen the saw” as Stephen Covey would say.

Know your priorities. This is a lot like know thyself, but a little more focused. What is most important to you? Figure that out, and drop the unimportant stuff. Life’s too short to waste it on nonsense that means nothing to you. Yes, you will disappoint some people, but you know what? At the end of the day, it’s your life we’re talking about here. You know-the one you only get one of? If you don’t enjoy it because you were so busy worrying about others that you forgot about yourself, what good have you really done? The alternative to prioritizing and focusing on your goals (and possibly disappointing a few people) is not prioritizing, failing, and then disappointing everyone. There is a serious opportunity cost in trying to do it all. And that opportunity cost is your happiness.

Keep your room clean. As above, so below. Your surroundings are a reflection of what’s going on inside your head. It’s much less stressful to walk into a clean, tidy and well organized room than it is to walk into a dirty, smelly room. This is especially important if your bedroom is your primary place of study. An organized study space is crucial if you want to maximize your ability to focus on your work. Vacuum. Swifer. Dust. Open a window and get a little air circulating. In fact, just making your bed in the morning is often enough to be able to breathe a sigh of relief.

Your worries are not unique. Don’t feel so alone. Everyone else is just as confused as you are. Everyone else is worrying about whether or not they’ve made the right decisions as well. Everyone else is worrying about whether or not they’re good enough too. Everyone else is trying to know themselves, sort out their priorities, and find time to clean their rooms. You are not alone. You are unique, but your worries are not. Everyone else is going through life as well, it’s just that some people are better at hiding the worry lines better than others. Take a deep breath. We’re all in this together. Go hug someone.

 Don’t forget to smile. I don’t know if I’ve said this enough already, but enjoy yourself. Smile dammit. Even if you don’t feel like smiling, do it anyway. Fake your joy till you make it. Smile at the sky, your friends, your professors, your teachers, the lady who handed you your coffee at Starbucks this morning. But most of all, smile at yourself. You’re okay. You are enough. You have enough. You’re good enough…

You’re going to be OK. I promise.

So, I really hope this at least brightened someone’s day. This advice wasn’t meant to be as practical as it was meant to be calming, and hopefully inspiring. But tell me now, what do you wish someone had told you before you embarked upon life?

Want a change of scenery, but don’t want to transfer? Have you suddenly been bit with the urge to teach Vietnamese children English, or does tracing pods of dolphins near the Great Barrier Reef sound more like your scene? Studying abroad will satisfy the need for far-flung travel, while providing an experience that will change your life and put you ahead of your peers when it comes time to find a job or apply for grad school. While the process can be long, and somewhat daunting, the rewards are priceless. Here are some ideas to help get the ball rolling.

• START EARLY! Depending upon your college, you may have to apply a year, or more, in advance. Many students choose to head overseas during their Junior year, so that may mean getting started your Sophomore year.

• Have a chat with your adviser: Send them an e-mail and tell them you are interested in studying abroad. Not only will they be able to tell you how to best fit it in to your current program, but if you need to complete any academic requirements before hand. The last thing you want to happen is to go and then realize you won’t graduate on time.

• Find the office that handles all of the “off campus” programs: Many colleges today offer more than one off campus program. Programs range from domestic programs in places like L.A., New York City, and Boston, to the more exotic, international locales of Peru, South Africa, and Denmark. More often than not, each location will specialize in students with particular majors or interests, so before you have your heart set on eating gellato in Rome make sure you don’t mind taking Intensive Italian and art history.

• Who do you want to study abroad with? Do you want to study abroad with students from your college? What about programs that take students from across the US? Would you be interested if you’re the only person on your end participating in a foreign exchange? Your college may have only have one type of these, or they may have a combination of programs to suit different needs. Either way, give it some serious thought. Each has their own unique pros and cons.

• When do you want to go? Fall? Spring? Summer? If you’re heading south of the equator remember the seasons are reversed!

• Exchange rates are your friend: Now would be a good time to start watching the exchange rate between the dollar and the currency of a few countries you are interested in. This will give you a rough estimate of what your buying power will be overseas. If you’re staying Stateside, check out the cost of living index for your the areas you’re looking at. CNN Money has a good calculator available here.

• Start saving NOW: Open an online savings account at some place, like ING Direct or SmartyPig, and label it with your dream destination. Did Grandma send you $20 for your birthday? Spend $10 on “school supplies” and throw the other $10 in the account. Working a part-time job? Throw $20 in every paycheck and by the time you head abroad, you’ll have a nice fund waiting for you. It may sound extreme, but I have never heard of anyone complaining they had saved too much money to take with them.

• Look at scholarships: Poke around and see if there are scholarships at your college or that you can apply to online that will subsidize, or fully fund, your adventure.

Look forward to Part II in the series which will cover narrowing down your choices, surviving the application process, and preparing for Visa/Entry Clearance applications!

“Disorganized Desk Syndrome” can affect all of us. When you are practically diving into piles of paper to find what you are looking for, and the floor surrounding your desk is even cluttered with “stuff”, something needs to be done!

Tip One - Get an Inbox
A proper physical inbox is a must for keeping an organized desk! It’s there to keep anything entering your desk in one place, looking neat and tidy ready to be organized later. At one stage, my whole desk acted as my inbox (as well as the floor around it when things got really bad), with everything just being piled on top of what already lay on it.

Tip Two - Set up a “student filing system”
As students, we haven’t got the need for a full filing system, it’s just an overkill and wastes precious space in our work area. We do still need somewhere to file things though, what I’ve found works best is a large arch-lever folder with dividers in for each category. This keeps everything filed away, without taking up too much space.

Tip Three - Organize how to arrange your school notes
If there is one thing I produce a lot of, it is lesson notes! Everyone has different systems for organizing notes; whether it’s individual folders for each subject, one big folder with dividers in or notebooks, the possibilities are endless. Leaving notes laying around your desk is not a solution however; and for the sake of your desk, find the system that works best for you as soon as possible!

Tip Four - If you are not a regular filer, add a “To File” tray on top of your inbox
I know that I don’t file regularly unless it is necessary, there is often useful tasks that I could be doing and therefore, I batch all my filing so that it becomes more productive, and usually do it every couple of days. If you buy into this “batch processing” mentality, then have a “To File” tray as well as an inbox tray. This means that when you get to filing, the papers aren’t all across your desk, they are all in one place.

Tip Five - Get a stationary holder
Whether it’s pens, pencils or paper, there are two problems people often have here. You can either never find them, or they are dotted all over your desk! Buying stationary holders not only keeps your desk looking tidy, but also improves your productivity by making it easier to find what you are looking for.

Tip Six - Invest in a good quality desk
If possible, buy a stylish looking desk that you really like the look of. It’s all psychological, but if you like the look of your desk, then you are more motivated to keep it presentable so that you and others can see how stylish it looks.

What tips do you have for curbing the clutter on and around your desk? Share them with us in the comments section below.

© Jose Fernando Carli

How many of you are just approaching the end of the academic year? I’ve finished a couple of weeks ago, and many students are starting to break up for summer in the coming weeks. You’re all imagining it already, the great (or not so great) weather, the BBQs, the parties and proms. With all these temptations, it’s easy to put off those essential tasks that make summer more relaxing and getting back to work next year a lot easier to stomach. Although it might seem like a pain now, you’ll be thankful for it later. The list below should cover the basics.

Things to Do

Return all textbooks borrowed from School

The last thing you want to deal with over summer is letters and invoices for textbooks that you’ve borrowed and should have returned. Do yourself a favor and return them to the right people after you’ve finished using them.

Cancel any subscriptions you’ll no longer need

Perhaps you’re dropping a subject next year and you’ve got a subscription to a journal related to it. Make sure you cancel these and save yourself a bit of cash!

Tidy your workspace

This exam period can be a stressful period and unfortunately, for many of us, with stress comes mess. Make sure your work area is tidy, filing systems sorted (see below) and that you could work at it if you needed to. The last thing you want is a messy workspace cluttering your home when it isn’t even being used.

Sort out filing systems

Get all of your notes organized now, making sure everything is ready for next year. This includes throwing out notes you really don’t need (remember, if re-sits are likely etc. – keep the notes) and making sure they are all in the correct places.

Sort out computer files

Almost the same as the above on sorting filing systems out; make sure your computer system is not neglected. Archive files that you aren’t going to need to refer to regularly and make sure you have a clear file structure in place. Now might also be time to do some computer maintenance you should have been doing.

And finally…

Enjoy summer

I’ve got 11 weeks off this summer, and I’m sure going to take a break after the stressful exam period has finished. For some tips on how to make summer worthwhile, see Maria’s post on “Summer Goals” and check out my post published next Tuesday entitled “Things to do during summer”.

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This list isn’t exhaustive, if you’ve got any other tips for things you do to wind down for summer, please share them in the comments section below.

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This is Carl Hickson’s regular “Tuesday Tips” column, writing on all aspects of student productivity to help you become a more effective and stress free student.