How to overcome college burnout?
You were dreaming of this day for so long. After months of planning your move to college, it’s finally happening. And it is great! It’s everything you have hoped for. Life is good. Now, months have passed by and your grades aren’t what you expected. Actually, nothing is really going as planned. In addition, your friends aren’t there when you need them, all parties look alike and you are tired of it all. You probbably don’t have who to turn to, and you are afraid of what your parents might think.
Well, this is a moment when you should help yourself. Get yourself off of a ground, take a deep breath, and get ready to move on! You have just hit a roadblock, but hey, you are not alone.
Stop feeling sorry for yourself
When you finally hear your wake up call, new challenges will emerge. No one will get you off to class if you turn off the alarm. College is getting even more demanding than you imagined. And out of nowhere, you start feeling bad. And I mean, really bad. As a result, everything makes you tired. You don’t care about anything. And everything just really sucks.
Altogether, you are experiencing college burnout. It is something that happens when you are dealing with large amounts of stress for a long period of time. And all that avoiding you did the last semester is not helping. Burnout may happen for many reasons: homesickness, loneliness, problems with professors, lack of interest in classes, lack of motivation or even overactive social life. The most important thing here is that it’s essential to recognize the early signs of a burnout if possible. Failure is not the end of the world. It is not nearly as bad as you think it is. You are not alone in this. It happens to everyone. Pick yourself up, and think about – where to go from here?
Learn how to overcome college burnout
Define your college time
The thing that is stopping you is your fear. It’s you thinking that you can’t do good in college. When you learn to remove this fear, something inside you will shift. And in that moment, you can start over.
- Make a plan
- Stay informed
- Replace bad habits with good ones
- Learn what kind of studying habits work best for you
- Start studying early
- Meet new friends
Make a plan
You must become a morning person. Before you get on track, you will have to deal with your last semester tasks. That takes time. A lot of it. That being said, you are going to need all the time you can get. First, set a bedtime. It will make it much easier to wake up earlier. Prevent yourself from hitting the snooze button by moving alarm from your arms reach. Instead of pressing snooze on your alarm clock, get out of bed. Wake up earlier than necessary, and don’t rush anything. Panic won’t help with anything.
Make a list of things that you need to take care of. A semester-long schedule will show you where your time will go. It will help you make better decisions when planning next semester’s strategy. Don’t forget to set aside a little time for a break.You don’t have to plan everything down to the second.
Make a list of things that you need to take care of. A semester-long schedule will show you where your time will go. It will help you make better decisions when planning next semester’s strategy. Don’t forget to set aside a little time for a break.You don’t have to plan everything down to the second.
- Create a time chart.
- Develop a schedule.
- Determine your goals.
- Stick to your schedule!
Plan everything in advance
Stay informed
Get to know your college professors. They will not come to you; therefore you must come to them. They are your most valuable resource for academic opportunities. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. No college professor is going to turn you away. Don’t depend on the friends to remind you about due dates. Writing down all of your assignments, appointments, and tests can be your most effective way to keep you organized and focused. Get involved. Meet other students. You will need them, as much as they will need you. And also, check your email. Just do.
Replace your bad habits with good ones
Bad habits prevent you from accomplishing your goals. They waste both your time and energy. So, why keep them? Bad habits address some needs in your life. And for that reason, it’s safer to replace them with a healthier behavior. If you expect to just stop, you probably won’t. It is possible – but you will need to be really strong. Breaking old habits is troublesome, but if making new habits is relatively simple for you, use that to your advantage.
Learn what kind of studying habits work best for you
Do you study better alone or with others? Do you need complete silence or not? Routine is crucial to studying and learning. Finding a space that you can call your own will be very helpful to academic work. It should be quiet, comfortable and offer space to spread out and get work done. Don’t overload yourself with tasks. Take time for coffee breaks. Try to eliminate distractions. If you think you have a good understanding of the subject, it’s always smart to get insights from others. Independent studying is great, but study groups can be essential.
Start studying early
College doesn’t wait for anyone, so you should get ahead of it. In order to do well in college, you need to build up confidence over time. Set a goal for yourself each day. Don’t leave anything to the last minute.
It is not high school anymore. Break up large tasks, and make them easier. Every task will seem less intimidating this way. Try to finish tasks as early as possible. Gradually increase your knowledge regarding the test subjects. It will make you feel much more confident when taking the quiz. In the end, you will never be blind-sighted by upcoming deadlines.
Start studying early, this will make a huge difference.
Meet new friends in college
Of course, you should keep in touch with your childhood friends and with ones from high school. But you will need someone here too. And not only for the partying. Therefore, try to meet as many people as you can. Some of this people will stay your friends for life. Sometimes you will want to watch movies with someone or to go to the library to study. Who knows?
