Staying Bright in the Dark
“It’s only 5:06?”
When the sun sets so early, my motivation does too, and I find myself becoming more burnt out and less able to focus on keeping to a daily routine, let alone do any schoolwork. I look around wondering if anyone else may feel this way, and I am typically greeted with resounding agreement: this time of year sucks when it comes to staying motivated!
So, how do we resolve this issue? Do we reverse summer so that we can all sleep in during this time and stay all cozy and warm while in the sunny months we hustle and bustle? Well . . . that is not a really popular solution.
Maybe instead of focusing on what we cannot change, we look at some ways to support ourselves during these darker winter months, where motivation to get out of bed dwindles severely.
My first recommendation is creating a daily schedule and sticking to it as closely as possible. Your body will need some time to adjust, but it’s better to have a structured schedule to adjust to than nothing at all!
Next, I recommend staying connected with your peers. It is easy to skip out on plans during this time of year, with the cold and dark weather—we can often find ourselves using these factors to justify distance between ourselves and others. I would suggest doing your best to continue to show up and be with peers—it makes all the difference.
Lastly, take care of you! It is so busy this time of year. I feel like every other conversation I have is about what finals I am working on or how much holiday shopping I still have to get through! The best thing you can do is remember that you are merely human. You are doing your best, and that is all that matters!
