Getting back into the swing of things

As University of Miami students, I think we can safely say our spring break is better than anyone else’s. The hard part about spring break is the week after when you have to go back to being a normal student. No more days on the beach and no more nights on the town. The problem is, you get a full week to relax or party yourself into a coma and you only get a day to get re-accustomed to the world of academia. Here are a few tips to get back into the swing of things after spring break (or anytime if you’re a total slacker all year round).

Treat the week following spring break like the first week of classes. Go to all of them. You’ll never get back into the swing of things if you start the week off not going to class. If you skip you’ll start to get back into break mode and the cycle will begin. Go to all the classes like it’s the first week back in August and act like you haven’t already endured the classes for two months.

Remember to set your alarms. The days of sleeping the day away are over. It may seem easy to hit the on switch on your alarm clock, but the hardest task will be not hitting the snooze button. Set your alarm for 30 minutes earlier than you’d normally wake up to get a head start on what is sure to be a sluggish morning. This will help you get used to the early mornings for the remainder of the week.

Take a peak at your agenda. I know you’ve gone the whole break without checking your agenda or to-do list but now is a good time get back to real life. Looking at a personal calendar will either motivate you or scare you into being productive, so either way you’re winning.

Make a list of things you need to do. To-do lists may seem intimidating, but there’s nothing more satisfying than checking tasks off of a list. The small goals you set for yourself don’t seem so small once you have a full list of things you’ve already done. This feeling of accomplishment will inspire you to go above and beyond.

Lay off the social networks and electronic devices. You’ve had all break to cyber stalk that guy or girl you met in the Grove on St. Patrick’s Day. Everyone on Facebook is just as unmotivated as you and is waiting for you to come online so that they can suck you into the black hole that is social networking. Log out for an hour or two and see how productive you can be. Since there’s more than one way to be distracted by such networks, it may be a good idea for you to leave the iPhone or Blackberry in another room or on silent. Do this so you can focus, that way you’re managing your energy and not your time.

Jasmine Henderson is a junior majoring in journalism and international studies. She may be contacted at jhenderson@themiamihurricane.com.