Finals Week Has Nothing On You

Well folks, the dreadfull moment that we have all been having nightmares about since the first day of the semester is finally here. 

FINALS WEEK. yay.

#sarcasm. know what I'm saying?

And I would be lying if I didn't admit that I may cross my fingers in hopes of a curve, a very large curve.

But before you start stressing out to the max and begin hooking yourself up to an IV of coffee, let me take a second to inform you that my dearest of all friends, Luke is here to help. He is always saving the day isn't he? ;)

1. Eat, eat & eat some more.

• Start the day off with a nice, healthy breakfast to get your brain working! 
• From past experience I find that eating three big meals tends to weigh me down both physically and mentally. I have found that eating 5-6 well balanced, smaller portioned meals are much lighter and leave me feeling full and refreshed. 

Here are a few ideas:

The Simplest, Lightest, Easiest Tuna Salad Ever! from Green Lite Bites. For the recipe click here.

Cooking Classy has the hottest recipe for hummus around and my taste buds do a happy dance whenever I make it. For the recipe click here.

You can never go wrong with a little guacamole and chips combo. I am convinced that no two foods compliment each other as well. I Heart Naptime stole my heart with this delicious guacamole recipe.

Scrambled Eggs or an Omelet. For the tricks on how to whip up this delicious Omega Omelette by Therese Kerr click here.

Lemon Thistle put a fun little spin on peanut butter toast and created a heavenly snack for finals week. To see for yourself click here. 

• If the options above aren't your cup of tea search for foods that are high in Omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are found in certain fish, nuts and oils are BRAIN BOOSTING acids that can potentially reduce test anxiety.

2. Sleep!

No, but really! Don't forget to chuck up the deuces and say "peace out, finals" in order to get an adequate amount of heavenly slumber every night. It will lead to more effective studying and it will help your GPA in the end.

Michael Howell, M.D., assistant professor with the Department of Neurology at the University of Minnesota reveals in an health talk article the importance of refraining from pulling all-nighters, especially during finals week! He suggests finding a balancing between sleeping in and keeping a consistent wake-up schedule. In order to keep your body and mind from going all crazy and out of whack, it is best to maintain a regular sleep schedule.

3. Be organized & have a plan of attack!

• First off, determine how many finals you have and when they are. This will allow you to plan out which finals you need to prepare for first. 
• Once you are aware of the information that will be on each final exam, organize your notes. 
• I organize all of the pertinent class notes, book notes, power points, articles, ect. into stacks for each final exam. 
• I then create a "To Do List" study plan of everything I want to complete before I take the final exam. 
• Lastly, I label my stack of notes with a sticky and specify the course, date, location & time of the exam, as well as any other relevant information I may find helpful. 

Here is an example of how I organized the material for one of my finals this semester.

4. Temporarily forget your Netflix password.

Remove distractions from your life for the time being. As much as I would love to binge watch Christmas movies all. week. long. I attempt to remain off of Netflix. Note I used the word attempt. I willingly admit that sometimes the urge becomes too much and Netflix wins. 

5. Switch Things Up! 
If you aren't retaining the information you are studying, mix it up and try a new method! 

1. Quiz yourself.

2. Draw it out.

3. Write it out.

4. Find a study buddy & discuss it.
5. Teach it to someone.
6. Watch it! Utilize all that YouTube has to offer!
7. Hear it! Re-listen to a lecture or listen to a friend explain it.
8. Read it. Dig into that fun-filled, information overload textbook of yours! 
9. Make notecards. I love using online notecards. For the past few semesters I have been using a free website called Study Blue and have really found it helpful.

6. Take Breaks!

Exercise will help to reduce stress, so get your blood a pumping, friends. Below are some resources to help you find the perfect stress-relieving exercise that will help you push through finals week with flying & healthy colors!

Lifescript's Top 9 Exercises for Stress Relief

Village Green Network's Breathing Exercises-Reduce Stress

Skinny Mom's 7 Exercises to Relieve Stress

Spark People's 5 Minutes to Less Stress Yoga

7. Be Intrinsically Motivated & Stay Positive
Here is what I find helps me:

• Make a list of why you are doing what you are doing!
• For me, I have dreams to go to graduate school, to be a successful business owner, mother and wife. As cheesy as it may be, when I feel like giving up, I remember the importance of my college degree in regards to my future plans and make myself keep pushing along.

• Put your trust in the Lord and turn to scripture. 
• Awhile back I blogged about 10 Encouraging Bible Verses to help you overcome test anxiety. I also refer back to these uplifting God-breathed words to help me stay positive in time of stress and uncertainty.

• Pump yourself up with some confidence-boosting music.  
• Bustle has 14 songs that will kick your motivation into gear within minutes.

 8. If you enter into panic mode, find something to relieve the stress!

Take a few punches to your pillow and you should be good to go! I'm joking, kinda. But in all honesty....

Here are a few more constructive options:

• Listen to instrumental Christmas music
• Be productive in a non-academic way for a bit & tidy up your room or do laundry
• Pack your bag for Christmas break
• Read your Bible or watch an online sermon
• Take a 5-minute break and focus on breathing deeply to help lower your blood pressure. 
• Reach out and talk to your other friends who are going through the same experience and bond over the stressful life of being a college student.
• Just an FYI: I recommend refraining from retail therapy. Online shopping got the best of my checking account last year during finals week. 

9. Find the perfect location & get comfortable.

For me, if I am going to be studying, especially for longer periods of time, I want to be comfortable while I am doing. My method, no matter how crazy it may seem, is to enhance your study environment to whatever best suits your style. 

My friends make fun of me because I bring my heated blanket wrap with me whenever I study at the library. I am not ashamed of it. I quite frankly think they are the ones missing out. It's pure bliss people. 

They are currently still on Post-Cyber Monday sale for only $39.99. To order one like mine from Sunbeam click here.

  And of course Starbucks never lets me down when it comes to the perfect study location. 

And Christmas cups make studying a little more bearable and comforting as well if I do say so myself.

And could this e-card be anymore on-point? I think not. I find it comforting studying with my besties, even if we aren't in the same major, it is nice to be going through the stress of finals week together. 

My sweet and hilarious friend Rach has been quite the loyal study buddy this semester! 

I absolutely adore this girl to pieces and I am thankful for her accountability and encouragement on the daily.

Other things to note when determining a studying location.

Find an area with:

• Good Lighting-It will increase your productivity and concentration
• No Clutter-a cluttered workspace leads to a cluttered mind
• An Energizing Atmosphere-enhance your atmosphere through colors and scents. Light a candle or flip on a Scentsy. Shades of red, orange, and yellow are stimulating and exciting colors.

10. Think Christmas!
The greatest part of winter finals is that as soon as the week is all over, you can spend every waking moment thinking about Christmas and partaking in Christmas fun! The reward of successfully making it through another finals week could not be any better, my friends!

Whenever you feel defeated, Think Christmas! I'm telling you, it works! ;)

Good luck on your finals, everyone! Luke and I are cheering you on! 

10 Reasons to Challenge Yourself to 10 Goals

Do you ever wonder what would happen if you put your goals "out there" for a little bit. "Out there" as in out in the open for anyone and everyone to see. What would happen if you became vulnerable enough to share with the world what your monthly intentions were and how you were going to accomplish them? 

For some reason in September I decided to do just that. I put my monthly goals "out there" with the hopes of gaining a little accountability. If people knew my intentions and my goals then I couldn't give up when I wanted to. I couldn't decide that completing the goal half way was good enough. I was encouraged and motivated to give it everything I had in order to prove to myself that I was capable of doing what I said I was going to do. 

Although sharing your goals out in the open is not for everyone, I do however truly believe that writing down 10 monthly goals is very beneficial. No matter how easy, simple, hard or challenging your goals may be, it is oh so rewarding when you can check them off at the end of the month.

Here are my top ten reasons why I encourage each of you to jump on the bandwagon with me and write down 10 goals for October:

#1. Goals help you determine a purpose and/or direction. 

Goals are a great way to help you separate what is important in your life from what may be irrelevant or distracting.

#2. Monthly goal setting is a great way to motivate yourself.

Sometimes it is hard to push yourself to do things, especially if they are things that you don't really enjoy doing. By setting monthly goals you can motivate yourself to tackle tough situations under a specified deadline. To me, there is really nothing that motivates me more than a deadline. 

#3. Goals help you to build enthusiasm. 

As you successfully achieve your monthly goals, an enthusiasm and light sparks inside of you that leaves you feeling more accomplished and productive. Achieving goals also helps to build your self-confidence.

#4.  Goals provide a foundation for discovering new monthly goals.

As you complete monthly goals, new interest or passions make arise that keep you reaching out for more. Goals are such a great way to help you convey who you are and invest and commit to things you love and care about. 

#5. Monthly goals are the perfect building blocks to bigger goals.

Do you ever have a task that just seems too outrageous and impossible to handle? Tasks such as this tend to weigh a person down and become discouraging. By using monthly goals, it allows you to chip away at larger goals, little by little, and day by day, in order to make them not so overwhelming. When you break down the larger goals into subgoals and spread them out amongst various months, they become very easily achievable and leave you feeling satisfied. 

#6. Goals teach you the importance of discipline. 

A goal without a plan, is ultimately just a wish. You have to put your goals into action. Designing a plan about how you are going to achieve your monthly goals is crucial and will determine your success. Remember, change is a result of making changes. If you change nothing, in return, nothing will change. 

#7. Goals help you adapt to change and overcome obstacles.

It is important to be flexible along the way. Remember to always be stubborn about your goals, not your methods. Sometimes alternative methods may just be the key to success.

#8. All goals don't have to be serious.
Life is meant to be fun. Taking it too seriously can be overwhelmingly stressful. Goals are definitely not meant to stress you out, they are meant to encourage you and motivate you to try new things. If you are on the hunt for the perfect fall nail polish, make that one of your 10 goals for the month. Maybe you really want to just tackle some of your Pinterest crafts that you have been pinning. There is no shame in adding that to your list of monthly goals. It is all about finding the perfect balance of what works well for you!  

#9. Goals can easily be turned into team goals for you and your besties or families.
Pick a goal for your family or group of friends and conquer the challenge together. Whether it be going on a walk together once a week to get more exercise, or all volunteer together at the same organization, completing goals along side the ones you love make the end result so much more rewarding. Embrace the challenge of starting something new together! 

#10. Monthly goals will enable you to see and rejoice over your progress!!!

I am telling you people, life is hard. The world can be a tough place to live in and defeat can easily overcome who we are. When you achieve a goal, give yourself some credit. Be excited about your results and embrace the positive changes that achieving these goals are making in your life. It is all about striving for progress, not perfection. 

Remember, every goal is uniquely yours, so own it, give it all you have and push through the obstacles. Can't wait to hear all of your success stories!!! Happy 'Goal Planning'!

Maddie

Text Anxiety No More

Hey there, friends! 

If you are in college, you have been, or you've known someone who has or is, you know that exams are hard core STRESSORS. Like really, if I am being 100% honest, exams have a way of sucking all of the fun and happiness out of your life. 

Well...test anxiety no more.

With midterms right around the corner, I am determined to not let the pressures and stresses of school weigh me down. Instead, I am going to put my hope in the word of the Lord with 10 of my favorite, most encouraging Bible verses. 

#1: John 14:1  “Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God, trust also in me.”

#2: Isaiah 40: 30,31  “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

#3: Philippians 4:6,7.  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

#4: 1 Peter 5: 6,7  “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

#5: Proverbs 16:9  “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”

#6:  James 1: 2-4  “Consider it pur joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

#7: Matthew 11: 28-30  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

#8: Jeremiah 17: 7,8. “But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.  He will be like a tree planted by the water and sends out its roots by the stream.  It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.  It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

#9: Proverbs 16:9  “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”

#10: Psalm 46: 1-3  “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and mountains quake and with their surging.”

I hope you find comfort in these verses in times of trial and stress!

Blessings! 

Maddie