As the semester draws to a close and you find yourself overwhelmed with papers and upcoming tests, remember there is a light at the end of the tunnel. In her blog article on Harvard Business Review’s Blog Network “Nine Ways Successful People Defeat Stress”, Heidi Grant Halvorson outlines these tips for a path to a stress-free life:
1. Have self-compassion. Basically, cut yourself some slack!
2. Remember the “Big Picture.” Don’t think of your paper as hours and hours of mind-numbing research. Think of it as a path to your future successful career.
3. Rely on routines. Routines are less stressful, because you’re doing things by rote and not making all those hard decisions.
4. Take five (or ten) minutes to do something you find interesting. Give yourself time to do interesting things that will help you refuel your energy.
5. Add where and when to your to-do list. Use if-then statements to get the work done: If it is 7pm, then I will be at the library writing my paper.
6. Use if-thens for positive self-talk. Keep your emotions in check by saying things like, “If my paper is due in three hours, then I will remain calm and relaxed.”
7. See your work in terms of progress, not perfection. Think about your accomplishments in terms of what you’ve already learned, not how much more you have to go to achieve perfection. Accept that you will make mistakes.
8. Think about the progress that you’ve already made. As in the point above, reflect on what you’ve already accomplished. Appreciate your small wins. Did you gather all the sources for your paper? Good job! Have you made an outline? Way to go!
9. Know whether optimism or defensive pessimism works for you. What’s your motivational style? Do you thrive on opportunities for achievement (promotion) or working to maintain what you already have (prevention)? Knowing how you get motivated will help you in achieving your goals.
As always, the library can help you! Whether it is a student worker or a librarian, ask us for help and we’ll get you the research you need to complete your papers.
Bibliography
Grant Halvorson, Heidi. “Nine Ways Successful People Defeat Stress.” Web log post. Harvard Business Review. Harvard Business Publishing, 13 Dec. 2012. Web. 02 Dec. 2013. .
Great post!!