Christopher Lai | Creative Director
Featured illustration courtesy of Jasmine Wiradharma
My essay is due tomorrow. I owe my parents some attention. Did I pay that bill? I can’t be late for work again. Have I studied enough to pass? I haven’t walked the dog. Agh!
Yup, it’s that time of year for students. Essays, presentations and exams are just around the corner, not to mention the pressures that come with family, work, money and the 9,000 other things you need to take care of.
It’s tempting to go into overdrive and tell yourself that you can take the heat. What’s a couple of nights without sleep? How dare I consider having fun this weekend? Potato chips can count as lunch, right? In the end though, this is short-term thinking. Pretty soon, you’re going to hit that wall and hit it hard.
Even with the world breathing down your neck, remember that you have needs too. Yes, you should want to do your best for your professors, your family and your boss, but the truth is that if you never meet your own needs then you will soon be failing to meet theirs. It’s a cliché, but if you’re not balanced, then it won’t be too long before you topple.
Something that I feel plagues me and a lot of my peers is pseudo-working: labouring over assignments and things that need to be done, yet feeling like nothing has been accomplished. This often happens when attempting to work on too many things at once, or simply worrying over everything you’re facing at the moment.
I have found that pseudo-working can be solved by committing to the moment. If you’re going to do it, then do it. You can’t complete a task if you’re in the middle of five tasks. Pick out the one thing that needs doing: close Facebook, turn off Netflix, hide the phone and focus.
Be present.
Be productive.
Get it done.
You will be in a much better state of mind knowing that at least one thing has been completed. It will be one less bit of mental flotsam cluttering your thinking. Systematically striking off bits of your to-do list might even allow you some freedom for things other than work and school.
It may seem counterintuitive to spend time on the non-essentials when your to-do list is longer than your arm, but taking time to do the little things may make the difference between keeping it all together and going down in flames.
Watch a single episode of your favourite show.
Talk to a friend for a few minutes.
Take a walk.
Make yourself some tea.
Have a 20-minute power nap.
And for God’s sake, brush your teeth.
Leaving out these simple pieces of your routine will begin to erode your mental state just as quickly as those essays will. You will lament how badly you seem to be managing, and sink deeper into the quagmire. Prophecies are self-fulfilling. If you’re acting like you can’t cope, then soon you won’t be.
Sometimes, you can only do so much and sometimes your best is not stellar. Rather than berating yourself for your failings, learn from the missteps, consider where you can do better next time and above all, just move on. You’re probably convinced that every one of your peers is shooting for the stars and hitting home runs every time.
Well, maybe they are. That’s none of your concern though. You have to do things your way. Sometimes, just okay is okay.
Take it from a chronically worrying, all-nighter-addicted, coffee-guzzling, self-doubting third-year student: not giving a damn about yourself eventually translates into not giving a damn about anything else, and then all that feverish work will be for nothing.
So look after yourself. Somebody needs to.
