A Semester in Review

 

Merry Christmas Eve loves! This school semester has been a whirlwind and I just wanted to take a moment to recap! This time of the year is without a doubt my favorite. I get to take a break from school, be home with my family who are all finally in one place, eat delish food, and reflect on the past year while preparing for the new one. 2017 has passed in a blur and I am excited for 2018. Can’t believe that I am going to become a college graduate this upcoming year!😯

 

 

I wrote a blog post at the beginning of September (here) in anticipation of what I wanted to accomplish this semester and my personal goals. I’ve been desperately trying to be on my own case to work towards them. I have also wrote a few posts throughout the past few months on this semester and it has been quite a journey. But even though it has been the hardest semester since entering college, it has also been the most memorable. I continued to learn about myself and how to step back from expectations at times. Now I just wanted to touch upon those goals I had set and see how far I have come with each one and what to work on for next semester. 🙈

 

1. Staying Focused

I wanted to stay more focused on my classwork and especially during class times. I have to say that I did stray away from being focused many times and my mind started wandering elsewhere. However, I realized that I often do that when I don’t understand the class material that was contingent on the previous lecture. It’s such a bad habit and I definitely want to break next semester. Because I lack focus at times, the confusion continued to pile up and consumed me when the test arrived. Though I was not always focused, I still was most focused this semester than any others and for that, I say I am improving!

 

2. Being More Proactive

This was a hard one to incorporate into my life. I don’t usually like asking for help and am quite independent in that sense. So when I am having trouble in class, I often try to figure it out myself with whatever resources I can find online rather than seeking out the professor. But this semester, I tried really hard to make sure I stay in contact with my professors and sucked up my excuses of why I shouldn’t go to office hours. This is probably the one semester that I enjoyed all of my professors a lot because of how much I interacted with them. From emailing them nonstop about random homework questions (sorry professors!) to just going to see them in office hours for extra advice. It does help to see what they expect out of you from the course and hearing first hand how to improve. Asking for help is still hard, but it’s something I definitely want to continue working on.

 

3. Stop Procrastinating

Well…..this one didn’t have such a good streak this semester. Some classes, I couldn’t procrastinate because there were due dates every week so it’s either I get it done or I get a zero. But I was taking a politics course and the entire course’s grade was based on a 30-page paper. I told myself I need to start ASAP…but if I am being completely honest, I wrote the last 14 pages the day it was due. I turned it in 5:00pm on the dot with my professor standing there…so yea procrastinating is still a goal that needs to be perfected. BUT for my other classes, I have been starting to study earlier (earlier in my sense) and making sure that I have all of my assignments in order. Organization is still key!

 

4. Study More

Academic wise, even though the courses were challenging, I still managed to get A’s (magically). I think I touched upon this before, but I used to be someone who never studied. But I have been slowly learning how to study more within the past two years. With so many exams in a such a short period of time, the key is to study effectively with the time you have. I was lucky that my exams were more spread out and for a couple classes I only needed to write papers. With exams, midterms and random assignments throughout the semester, it’s important to lay out a schedule to know when to start studying and for what.

 

5. Take Necessary Breaks

This semester was tougher because of the courses but also the expectations I keep giving myself. It’s not bad at all to be an over-achiever, but it is if we keep giving ourselves too much. I’m constantly adding to my list of to-do’s and there’s only a certain number of hours per day to accomplish everything. So this semester, I focused on doing the must-do’s and saving the other tasks for later. Having personal time to myself every day has been helpful in making sure my sanity is intact! Whether that be heading to the gym, cooking a meal or just watching a quick video/movie. I am most productive after a break (of course making sure it’s not too long).

 

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

 

sweater dress | stuart weitzman boots

 

So after reviewing my top 5 goals of this semester, I think I did an okay job. There are things that I need to continue working on for the next semester (my last one!!). Some of you may ask why I am working on these even though it’s my senior year and the next semester is my last. I think the five goals I outlined above are relevant in all areas of my life. Because I am in school still and it takes up a large amount of my time, it’s the area that I apply my goals to most. I am hoping that if I perfect these bad habits of mine to form better ones, they will ultimately transfer to any part of my life like forming a career next year to my personal development.

 

 

I hope you’re having a great Christmas Eve—I’m sure the majority of you are preparing for the big day tomorrow. And if you don’t celebrate Christmas, I hope you’re still having a happy holiday season. I am personally excited for snuggling up on the couch all day, surrounded by family and giving my prezzies to everyone. Let me know what you’re most excited for!

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until my next thought then!

jen❣️