Ria Perera is a freshman at UC Santa Barbara studying Economics. Ria was born in London, England and raised in sunny California. Some of her interests include singing, dancing, and sketching. Writing is one of her most avid passion and she has been working on a young adult novel for two years that she is hoping to publish.
At this point most of us have experienced enough of college to recognize the “mid-quarter blah period” as it’s coming. And it is coming. It’s usually the time after midterms where we’ve all been exhausted from studying to the point of no longer caring or at least to the point of not wanting to put in 100% anymore. When it comes to the decision of taking a nap or going to class, this period makes it easier to pick the former. However, we almost always regret this decision afterwards as we realize we’ve been making a nasty habit of this or as a classmate tells us about how important that one class actually was. But there are several ways to nip this blah period in the bud. To re-inspire yourself:
Try new study techniques to freshen things up!
If you’re used to holing yourself up in your room and hitting the books, consider finding a study buddy that doesn’t distract you but allows you to have fun while studying
Shift your focus!
This academic funk can convince you that your classes are boring now and that there’s no point if you’re no longer interested, but find the things that do interest you in the topics you’re learning and focus more on those. Actively seek answers like the intelligent researcher/student that you are. Keep asking questions.
Spruce up other parts of your life!
Sometimes a slight invigoration in fashion or simply wearing your hair a different way can inspire other sectors in your life as well. It’s all about putting your best foot forward. You may be surprised with what a little change can do to your overall mindset. If not a change in fashion, maybe a change in lifestyle? Be more active. Challenge yourself to meeting more people. Try a new hobby. These changes affect mentality and, in effect, can transfer to other fields as well.
I confess that my reservations about even trying to apply for Resident Assistant for Tropicana stemmed from my idea that it has never been my privilege to experience such a position. I discredited myself before even giving myself a chance, something I am not willing to continue to do. I am aware of my capabilities and I know how far I can go with them. I am conscious of my strengths and weaknesses and I never let the latter go unreformed for long. So why couldn’t I make an investment of trust in myself and commit myself to the ‘challenge’ of trying? I write this to alert people to the ability within themselves. No, I don’t know the qualities to be admired of every person that reads this page, but I know people know themselves better than anyone else. Why is it that we need validation from anyone outside of ourselves? Capacity cannot be seen by others if it is not shown to others. This is why I am a firm believer of trying; trying for everything that we may want. So what if it’s not rational? So what if it’s not practical? So what if others think our goals are trivial, insignificant, or negligible? Our dreams are ours to hold. Our dreams come slow and go fast. To let a dream fade unanswered is a crying shame. Only then is it a waste of time. I say, if you want something badly enough, there could be nothing standing in the way of going for it but you. The goal shouldn’t be winning. Success is to be had in the other spoils of simply trying because there is much to gain from the vulnerability of endeavoring. So take another look at what you want and compare it to what you have now. Every accomplishment started with the decision to try. Not completely, one hundred percent satisfied enough with your achievements to die happy right here and now? Then keep working at it. Make your life the movie you’ve always wanted it to be and make yourself the star you’ve countlessly envisioned. You’ll find that with a little confidence and devotion, it is not impossible.
In Santa Barbara, we occasionally hear the rolling sirens of ambulances nearby, speeding past our windows. But I’ve come to ask a pestering question. What about the ailments that don’t get a siren? Like a broken heart, a collapsed pride, or a mental breakdown? College sees a lot of the latter. As second quarter veterans of UCSB, we have all experienced the stresses that come with the close of a quarter. Finals have become the dreaded inflictors of such pain, but no hospital, no medication can cure us. Here are some ways to therefore prevent mental breakdowns and to do so as early as now:In Santa Barbara, we occasionally hear the rolling sirens of ambulances nearby, speeding past our windows. But I’ve come to ask a pestering question. What about the ailments that don’t get a siren? Like a broken heart, a collapsed pride, or a mental breakdown? College sees a lot of the latter. As second quarter veterans of UCSB, we have all experienced the stresses that come with the close of a quarter. Finals have become the dreaded inflictors of such pain, but no hospital, no medication can cure us. Here are some ways to therefore prevent mental breakdowns and to do so as early as now:
Get some sleep. If you feel your eyes drooping, and see the words on those pages blurring together, just stop. No matter how much more you have to do, close that book, set aside those notes, and get some sleep. There’s no sense in robotically reading without retaining information. You’ll actually be hurting your ability to focus later on due to the continued lack of rest. Without that necessary energy you will read and think slower and, possibly, incoherently as I’ve experienced. I call it my “Lost Sleep Loopy-ness”. Your body needs downtime to complete the processes it usually goes through while you sleep. Depriving your body of that opportunity can mess up your system.
Review your notes early on. I won’t lie. In the past, I’ve left a class proud of what I’d learned enough to ignore the notes and just take a nap/get on with my day. But the average hour and fifteen minutes of class can actually go over a lot of information (which some of us realize when we miss a class and try playing catch-up for the next week). Now imagine that multitude of information over a quarter’s worth of classes. This is the information we crammers try to fit into our studies in the span of one or two nights before finals. It is more beneficial than many realize to just review each class’s notes the day after as a simple refresher while eating breakfast or while drying your hair after a shower. You don’t need to dedicate too much time solely for your review and you feel much more confident in the information learned when you encounter the topics again in the course afterwards. This, in addition to your specifically dedicated study time and class participation, can make you one kick-butt expert on any course.
Remain positive. It’s always easy to let the large, double-digit amount of pages you have left to review stress you out enough to distract you. Then you find yourself scrambling to finish faster, re-reading passages because you were too busy freaking out to really pay attention the first time, and on the brink of surrendering to your negativity. Breathe. Hone in on what you’re supposed to accomplish. Let everything else, all distractions, fall away into the background. Don’t let yourself think about anything but the content you’re studying. Be in the present. And if you’re like me and need incentive to finish at a timely pace, promise yourself a reward after. When you’re finished, you can enjoy your prize (Ice cream? Music break? SLEEP? One episode of your show?) and most likely, GOOD GRADES.
Going to college is like taking the ‘you’ you’ve known and worked on for so long and plonking yourself in a completely new environment. Our comfort zones have now been stripped away and we are encouraged to adapt to our new surroundings. In the shuffling mess that is moving and adjusting, how do we go about making new friends? How do we segue from feeling the absence of old friends? The transition is actually a lot simpler than we realize. The first step has nothing to do with seeking out a companion, but actually begins with studying oneself. When changing environments, it is very easy to stress out. The same applies for changing the homes of animals and pets. Everything around us seems to be changing. It then becomes difficult to remember or to gauge who we are, though we might have known it extremely well before the move. Start small. Observe your reaction to the change. Do you like it? Are you happy? Are you ready to let go of the past and embrace your new life? Answering positively to these questions is paramount to forging new, successful relationships. When you feel ready, others around you can feel that you’re ready as well. Take out your headphones, smile a bit more, let your happiness show. People tend to gravitate more towards others that know themselves and are happy rather than downers.
Now that you’ve fixed yourself, it’s time to meet some people. The best way to go about doing this is to do things that interest you. Through this method, you will encounter people with the same interests. When your friendships solidify, you can then fangirl together, start an epic bromance, or even date? It is also important to keep in mind that sticking with what you know is not good enough. This is college! There are plenty of social opportunities to try new things. Got some extra time on your hands? Join a club! Take chances! Do things you wouldn’t normally do! Now, I’m not saying to jump off a cliff in the interest of finding a bungee-jumping friend or doing things you know are wrong just to make a new circle of dangerous acquaintances, but are you not sure if you’ll take to a theater class? Take it and see! You’ll get GE credits out of the way whilst meeting a myriad of people. Who knows? They may be trying to make friends too and in your mutual struggles, you can find each other!
In short, everyone is clamoring to find out who they are. The thing is, there will never be a definite answer because we will change and change and change again over the course of our lives. Face it. Who you are now is A LOT different from who you were freshman year in high school. We ditched the braces, cut and dyed our hair, our bodies and confidence filled out a little bit more. But if you make a positive experience out of your changes, we can all grow up together and make some lifelong friends out of it. So don’t be afraid to discover yourself and what you want and make yourself approachable.
