tales of an overachiever

arianne / 19 / bs ctm / in uni

[cielstudies]

16.06.17 // 10.23 AM

learning japanese using tae kim’s guide! apparently my friend managed to get her japanese to N5 level just by a few years of watching anime and no formal lessons?? i think that’s amazing - i’ve been watching anime for a year (i used to just read manga) and so far i’ve only been able to pick up basic phrases…

[ check out my instagram @studyingg ♡ ]

[milsostudy-blog]

this is a masterpost on how to deal with all of your schoolwork during a shitty mental health week. it is important to note that mental illness is a finnicky animal, and that not everyone has the same experiences as far as symptoms and adverse affects are concerned. however, these are all tips/resources that have worked well for me in the past, and i hope that there are at least a few that will work for you as well.

i. look at your schedule for the next day. rally all of your energy do all of the assignments and readings that absolutely must be done by tomorrow. disregard everything else. it can be done another day.

some portion of the stress will be lifted off your shoulders, and you will be able to relax a little bit and focus on things that are more important. If it can be delayed by 24 hours, it is not worth doing the night you are on the verge of a real crisis. i’m not advertising procrastination, but the reality is that we all do it. and i would argue that sometimes it is justified. if you are having a bad enough night where it takes all of your emotional and physical energy just to get through 30 pages of reading, you need to put nonessential things aside for a time when you are feeling more mentally available. your work will be higher quality if you do it this way.

ii. take a shower.

showers (especially hot ones) will help clear your mind, open your sinuses, and relax your muscles. stand/sit under the spray until you feel less tense. even if you’ll be heading straight back to your room to work, you will be more relaxed and levelheaded to tackle the assignments in front of you.

iii. tackle your essential assignments in smaller chunks.

slow down your routine by a few minutes. study in 10-15 minute bursts instead of your usual 20-30. study in your room instead of the library. make a small change that could help boost your focus. however your study schedule may look, slowing everything down can help you accomplish your essential tasks without causing you to burn out before everything is done. it may seem impossible to slow down your already fast paced schedule, but trust me, even making small adjustments can do a lot of positive work.

iv. seek help and support from outside sources if you need it.

study with a group of friends or classmates if you are feeling up to it. this will help with your comprehension of the material, and might help boost your motivation to get through those essential assignments so you can go back to your room and wind down. call your family if that will help you feel better about where you are. if necessary, seek counseling/wellness services on your campus. this information is often posted somewhere on your university’s website. remember that there is absolutely no shame in seeking out therapy and counseling related services! there are also many online resources for mental health you can access as well, if in person counseling is not a viable option for you.

v. remember that you are not a bad student because this is happening. you are not a failure. this is not your fault.

mental illness sucks. it sucks all of your energy and motivation right out of your system. it is brutal. sometimes you will need to take a night off. let yourself do this without punishment. your mental health is important. repeat this mantra to yourself until you believe it. above all, remember that your feelings and struggles will always be valid. keep fighting, i believe in you!

[smallbeanstudies]

How to Organize and Revamp a Study Space

Plan and visualize how you want your study space to look like

This is a really important step in doing a make-over of your entire study area because it will help guide you on what you have to organize or change to accommodate your new plan. Even if it’s just moving some things around or completely rearranging your space, you should always have a gameplan in mind as a goal if that makes sense. You can’t sail a vessel without a heading for your destination! Right?!

Decide whether you want to do some simple organizing or a total overhaul

This is also another important mental decision you have to make because it affects what you are going to change and how much willpower you will require in this whole process.

Take EVERYTHING Down (if possible)

This is mostly optional, but I just find it easier to clear out my study space if I have a clean and fresh slate. Move all your belongings if you can from your desk, shelves, drawers, etc. to another open space (e.g. another table, the floor, bed). This in turn will provide you an “open floor plan” to work with, meaning that you can rearrange and put things back according to your new plan.  But, before putting things back and rearranging go through all your items and get rid of unnecessary junk by putting things in storage or just simply throw it away. I would also recommend sorting similar items into piles. This might make it easier to rearrange!

Designate different areas for different things (according to your plan)

This is another tip that can make the process easier than it needs to be! I’d recommend placing sticky notes around your space or making a mental “list” in your head so that you know where everything will go, etc. It will also give your space some kind of logical plan of how everythings is setup and organized.

Vacuum and/or Disinfect (or wipe down)

If you can, vacuum to get rid of debris and dust and use a safe and mild form of disinfection to kill germs and other gross things because a revamped study space also needs to be clean as well! It’s a lot of work, but trust me the extra effort will be worth it in the end.

Use ALL available space you have

This is a no brainer, but use all the space you have! Instead of stuffing everything on your desk, use available drawers and shelves! It helps to reduce clutter on your desk in the first place, while taking advantage of your resources! Beforehand, clean out drawers and shelves so that you can put new and more relevant items as junk tends to get pilled up in these areas.

Play music (if you like music)

I’m sure I’m not the only one, but playing your favorite tunes will just make this tedious “chore” just a tad bit more happy. Anyway, you’re are going to have a clean and tidy new space afterwards!

Maximize your available room

Try not to stuff things into corners of your area! It will just waste space and make all your belongings cluttered! Instead, take the time to put things away carefully in an organized fashion, and take advantage of your space!

Get more bins and other storage saving mediums (optional)

I know that this will kill the bank, so please don’t force yourself to get the “fancy” containers that you see all over the community! This is TOTALLY OPTIONAL! I, myself find these to save and organize your space as it lets you group things together, and they just end of taking less space most of the time (I don’t know how they do it lol)! So if you have the resources, try this out!

If you have any tips that you would like to add, please send me a message here! I may do an updated version in the future if I feel that I have more tips to add! Thanks for reading and stay tuned for my next advice post! Good luck with cleaning and organizing your study space for max productivity! I have faith in you!

[polcry]

15.2.17 // 6oC ☁️

32/100 Days of Productivity 

Bad morning: crappy grade, boiler issues, distinct lack of will to live. At least I finished an essay, I s’pose. 😒

[the-devil-wears-zara]

[areistotle]

[image source: x]

Hi loves! Besides thanking you for all the love you gave to my last book masterpost, I wanted to create another book masterpost in order to share some really good YA novels and/or books that I’ve seen on instagram through my bookstagram. This masterpost will once again include links from the book depository, where you can buy your own copy of the book recommended. (NB: I have not read all of these books, I am sorry if any of them are not to your liking!) Anyway, let’s get right to it then!

YA Books/Novels:

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry 

The Fault in Our Stars and Looking for Alaska by John Green

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky 

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Eleanor & Park and Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell 

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

The Sky Is Everywhere + I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

Wonder by R.J. Palacio 

It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness 

Everything, Everything and The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon 

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo

Ask the Passengers by A.S. King

Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern 

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

All the Bright Places and Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

The Outsiders by SE Hinton

I Was Here by Gayle Forman

Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Series:

A Court of Thorns and Roses (1, 2, 3) by Sarah J Maas

A Darker Shade of Magic (1, 2, 3) by V.E. Schwab

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

The Harry Potter series + Harry Potter and the Cursed Child + Fantastic Beasts by J.K. Rowling

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll 

The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan 

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

Divergent by Veronica Roth

His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman 

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Maze Runner by James Dashner

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli 

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Anna and the French Kiss (1, 2, 3) by Stephanie Perkins

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before + PS I Still Love You + Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han

Me Before You and After You by Jojo Moyes

[other links]

all my masterposts

my study/book instagram @ aristotelian

my goodreads @ mitochondrions [also snapchat if u wanna]

As usual, feel free to message me or comment to add your own recommendations to this masterpost!

[artemistudying]

oml helena, these are awesome!! 

[areistotle]

thank you lovely!!

[schoolnotesinspo-blog]

[theletterkilleth]

The best translations into English do not, in fact, read as if they were originally written in English. The English words are arranged in such a way that the reader sees a glimpse of another culture’s patterns of thinking, hears an echo of another language’s rhythms and cadences, and feels a tremor of another people’s gestures and movements.

Ken Liu, Translator’s Postscript to The Three Body Problem by Liu Cixin (via theletterkilleth)

[terjistudies]

2016/09/05 I went to stock up on few school supplies and I found those absolutely adorable flash card memo blocks and just had to get them!

[fiercelittlestudyblr]

5.2.17 Doing some reading with @lightninginthecolliednight! It’s a rainy day and we’re watching the world go by with some lunch. I got the best mark I’ve ever gotten at uni yet on my recent work and I am so happy! We’ve started a new human geography unit and I’m finding it really interesting. Hope everyone is having a great weekend! I’m drinking lots of coffee and doing some more reading xxx emily

[studylustre]

ig: studylustre

[skiesandjournals]

08.04.17 - 5/100 days of productivity finished my bujo spread for next week! ft. my awkward hand position :’)

[schoollifeandstuff]

“And as all undesirable contents 
left the jar, Pandora catches hope 
before it can escape” - Theogony, Hesiod

[lawfulstudent]

35/100 days of productivity | March 20th

Finally back on track! Started my last course of this semester today, Administrative Law, which I actually find really interesting. Also put up some polaroids to make my study space slightly more cosy 🤗🤗   

Tune: Cornerstone by Arctic Monkeys

[quacklr-blog1]

ai | 07.24.16 | i was at MUJI last friday, cool stuff!

[getstudyblr]

25 . 05 . 2016 // more of my sociology/ philosophy notes The test was today, and I have no idea how it went. Sociology was all right, but I started to feel really dizzy and my vision got blurred halfway through the philosophy one. 😞 guess I was just too tired, it happens

[fotosynthesize]

Messy messy workspace because finals r creeping up on me 😵