It was full speed ahead when the semester started. Most likely, much of your steam has been used up now. It is normal to lose some steam, but what you do during the short recess ‘break’ might just determine how much further you can go for the second half of the semester.

Are you curious about what I’ve been up to? Read on, as I share with you the few struggles I had and lessons learnt during the past month. If you are also facing similar challenges, I just want to let you know that you’re not alone.

Struggles and Revelations

Thinking It vs Doing It

Thinking about doing a task takes up a lot more time compared to doing the actual task. This usually happens when I procrastinate work that seems difficult and challenging to complete. For instance, I kept thinking about sorting out my finances for 2 weeks, but didn’t take any action towards it because I thought it would require a lot of time and effort. However, when I finally did it, it took me less than 15 minutes. Even though, it wasn’t as ‘perfect’ as I wanted it to be, it is still sufficient for me to get by until next month’s review. I could’ve saved all that mental energy if I just blocked out a time to do the task in the beginning.

Sometimes, that task you don’t feel like doing is the best thing to do right now.

Leaving Things To The Last Minute

For quite some time, I was really stressed out about a graded assignment. Even though I had ample time to complete it, I procrastinated and rushed through it when the deadline came. Looking back, I think it was because I was trying to make it ‘perfect’ and sub-consciously did not want to accept anything less than that.

If you are also having a ‘perfectionist’ mindset around your assignments, remember that it probably will not matter as much in the future. (The difference between an A+ and a B+ assignment may not be as significant as you may think 5 years down the road.) Don’t forget to reach out to your professors or classmates if you face any doubts and require some help. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Do your best with the time and resources you have and be proud of the effort that you’ve put in.

Underestimating Activities

I often found myself tending to underestimate the time I would take to complete my work. It can be homework, admin tasks or even meetings. My accountability buddy brought it up in a conversation and I was glad that I wasn’t the only one who had this problem.

She said that it could be because it is a new task and we really do not know how long it can actually take to complete it. Another reason could be that we are not strategic in focusing our energies on the more important aspects. For example, when preparing for a presentation, we might end up spending too much time fine-tuning the design of the slides instead of the actual content.

In this case, it is crucial to be aware and immediately pause when we catch ourselves doing that. When that happens, re-assess your priorities and continue with the essential parts. (Even though your brain may be screaming at you to focus on the ‘easier’ aspects.)

It can help if you set aside a short period of time (e.g. 15 minutes) to get as much done as possible. The goal is not to complete the task, but to be closer to accomplishing it than before. Once you made some progress towards it, the task may not seem as daunting as before.

Having Multiple Goals

Even though I have a lot of goals that I want to achieve by the end of this year, choosing to focus on 1 or 2 of them doesn’t mean that the rest aren’t important to me. In fact, by choosing only 1 goal, it is giving myself full permission to go all-in and put my 100% effort into achieving it.

When the time set aside to pursue that goal is up, I would be able to use the skills I have picked up and apply them to my next goal. If you are feeling paralysed or undecided by what you should focus your energy on, go with the one you feel most called to do and set an end date to accomplish it. Once you’ve decided, your brain may have major doubts about it. It is just its way of trying to keep you safe in your comfort zone. Don’t worry, you can always pursue the other goals after the specified timeline.

September Favourite Tool

I’ve been listening to meditations and discovered a free meditation app called Insight Timer. I usually listen to it before falling asleep. (Getting sufficient sleep is definitely one of my priorities now.) I found guided imagery meditations most helpful for me because they allow my brain to focus on painting an image of what the voice is telling me, instead of focusing on the million other thoughts running through my mind every night. If you too have trouble falling asleep, I highly recommend finding something similar which calms your mind and allows you to only focus on a single thought.

What I’m Working On In October 2020

Recess week is coming soon and I want to take this time to pause and reflect on what I’ve done or haven’t done so far, what has or hasn’t been working for me and recalibrate my goals. I encourage you to also take some time off for yourself and review what you’ve accomplished so far. No matter your progress, be proud of where you are right now.

I know the weeks after recess break tend to be more intense. This doesn’t mean that you have to over-stress or create unnecessary drama about it. Remember that the circumstance is neutral and it is only the thoughts you have that give rise to your emotions and feelings. You always have a choice on how you want to feel about the situation. I found that writing to my future self also helps in encouraging ‘future-me’ to persist through the hard times. Reach out to friends or family for support if you need to, and know that I am always here rooting for you.