Talk NERDY To Me Blog

Once the academic semester starts, it may feel like you are in a marathon, at a high altitude, where there is no stopping, no breaks, and no help. These extreme conditions may often be encountered through the excessive amount of information from various syllabuses, trying to find where your classes are, getting to know communication portals, preparing for exams, finding assistance for homework, creating connections with professors and your peers and more. A lot of this stress can make the excitement of college or achieving your dream career appear out of reach and may also make you second guess your capabilities. No worries, here are some tips on how to manifest yourself to success!

You are a strong person who will take on any challenge and fear no matter how "impossible" it may seem. You have the unwavering strength to look for opportunities in every situation. How exactly do you do this? Well, I'm glad you asked! Firstly, you think differently than others. You have a Growth Mindset.

Jane Goodall quote in colorful text "I do have reasons hope: our clever brains, the resilience of nature, the indomitable human spirit and above all, the commitment of young people when they're empowered to take action."

1. Growth Mindset -  The way we think about things has a great influence on how to approach situations and react to them. When we know we are facing something difficult, we should never put ourselves down before we can begin to attack the problem. If we don't think that we are capable of doing something before we do it, we are setting ourselves up for failure. When a circumstance results in an event that we did not want, we have to see the best out of it. We must take everything as an opportunity to improve our techniques, and to always find room to improve.

Scissors cutting card with words "I can't" printed on it

During the semester, if you are having a difficult time, you tried your best but still failed your first midterm (for example)- don't beat yourself up. Analyze what worked best for you (and what didn’t), what resources have you not utilized, and recreate your study approach to pass your next exam. Some new techniques you may implement can include going to office hours, reviewing lecture slides before class, or taking neater notes.

2. Prioritizing Comfort - In a large college campus where there are nearly 50 thousand students, there can be so much to explore. For many entering college, this is often a time where people of various economic, social and religious backgrounds are exposed to each other, leading to culture shock. With this in mind, many may feel pressured to dress like their peers, go party like others, spend like certain people, or studiously exhaust themselves like others. My point is, it is easy to get lost in what everyone else is doing. Especially with the responsibility of still being a student, it's important not to forget  what makes you feel most comfortable mentally and physically. 

"good things are coming." written repeatedly on successive lines of text.

For some, comfort may not just mean being yourself, but it can also extend to doing things that make you feel happy. Whether it means making time to call your family because you're feeling home sick, cooking your favorite childhood meal, or taking time to paint - you should do things that make you feel centered, ina place with many new and different things.

• Furthermore: If you know what hobbies make you feel great, there are often clubs or organizations that also have these interests on campus! Connecting with a group with similar interests can allow you to meet more people and expand your connections and  can help make your campus feel not so big anymore.

3. Motivation - Are you finding it difficult to push yourself to do work, are you questioning if your major is too difficult for you, or if college was meant for you? Often when this happens it can be because it feels like no one believes in you, and because of that it can be even more challenging to believe in yourself. When this happens, you have to remember that you, out of thousands of applicants, were selected to go to this school. That means someone saw something in you, that led them to believe you have something others don't to succeed from your college! 

• If it's not belief that is holding you down, but you still need something to rekindle that spark in you - I recommend a vision board. Take the time to read articles of what you hope to work on in the future, note down goals you want to accomplish, people you want to help, and place it all onto a board. Remember who is counting on you or who you cannot wait to make proud or what you simply can't wait to achieve. Remembering why you wanted to pursue your major in the first place can really bring out some of the original excitement you had when you were applying to college! In addition to big goals, it's important to also have micro goals on your vision board as well. Celebrating the small successes helps us keep track of our progress. In addition, it may also be helpful to listen to podcasts or Tedtalks of people who have been in your shoes. Listening to the stories of how others in tight spots were able to make it to their goals can be very inspiring.

The tactics mentioned above are used to support good academic practices, but they are also strategies to approach many life obstacles. Many of these lessons are those taught to children in more simplified quotes like "don't give up" and "be yourself", but over time it can be easy to forget to view things optimistically. This is why I encourage you to manipulate your mind to believe you will achieve great things, and great things are always working out for you, in whatever form that may be. Losing and winning may simply depend on how you look at things.