1. Your brain was once a superhero sitting inside your head, taking all the reading notes from the last however many months and hurling them into your long-term memory no problem. Now that brain of yours is like a drunken uncle telling you stories you never wanted to hear so you obviously dismiss him, maybe with a roll of the eyes. PLOT TWIST: Those stories are full of necessary information, aka they are the facts you gotta know. Your brain is playing stupid tricks on you. It’s time to treat yo’ self.

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2. Your friends just walked into your room because they were questioning whether or not you were alive. They open the door to see you in slouched in your seat, two empty coffee cups by your side, and a half-eaten bag of pistachios. Oh, and a textbook somewhere, probably. You’ve just zoned out for a good hour, and can’t even pretend you’re getting work done. It’s not worth your time to fake it anymore. It’s time to treat yo’ self.

3. There’s a checklist beside your notebook that is fully, head-to-toe dressed up in completion. You’ve knocked everything off that list, you champion, and yet you can’t tear your eyes away from the screen of PowerPoint slides in front of you. There comes a certain point when you need to trust in yourself that you’ve studied enough to do well, at the very least, and that you’ve given this test your all. It feels good! Take a break to veg out and laugh with some buddies and, most importantly, treatin’ yo self before heading back to it (if you want).

4. Your test is tomorrow at 3pm. As the beast you are, you studied for about six hours straight after you got home and it’s now 4am. Not that you feel like you’ll ace the test, but you feel pretty sure you won’t fail. Sadly, this is sometimes what cramming amounts to, and your week was crazy! Stop thinking of sleep as an unworthy surrender. Sleep helps you retain that information. So snuggle into bed for a short, but sweet sleep and wake up with a steamy coffee for the last long haul.

5. You haven’t necessarily been studying for hours on end, but your eyes are giving in on you. It’s like you suddenly need glasses, and not the cool, hip glasses but the 85 times prescription glasses that will make your eyes all bug-like. Focus on something far away for a couple minutes if you’re in dire need of studying more, or… treat yo’ self!

 

So after you have decided whether or not to treat yo’ self… how do you treat yo’ self? Do you even know what this beautiful sounding phrase means? 

Treating yo’ self involves doing something awesome that is totally tailored to your every desire and no one else’s. You deserve that pair of cashmere socks that somehow have enough demand to never go on sale. You also deserve a whole day at the spa after killing it during the exam period. But how do we condense these little treats of personal joy into fifteen-thirty minute study breaks? Here are some ideas that could spark your interest.

1. Stock up on your favourite variety of chips and sprinkle them over a big bowl of popcorn. Then proceed to knock on your roomie’s door and ask if she would like to get in on a miniature, super-speed girls’ night where you divulge any and all plans for the summer, even if that’s being whisked away to Rome by some guy you lock eyes with at the bar. Studying can make us delirious. Just go with it.

2. At the risk of sounding thirteen, sometimes a dance party in your pajamas works some serious magic on low spirits. The worn out university student can almost forget how to dance after slumping in a desk chair for hours on end. And that’s just unacceptable. Dance parties can be solo, with or without headphones depending on the time of day, and with or without a dear friend who doesn’t need a hint of dancing coordination either. Dance parties are just so flexible.

3. Try massaging the creative side of your brain on a treat yo’ self break. First, brew a massive cup of tea or blend a massive milkshake (ice + milk + cocoa powder + bananas + honey = nutritious delight), because we need some creative juices. Then, take a piece of paper and every single one of your coloured pens/pencils. Try making a visual list of what you hope to do this summer and, even more abstract, how you hope to feel. You don’t have to be Vincent Van Gogh to be pleased with the product. For example, you could plan a me, myself & I day and visualize it with all of your favourite activities.

4. RECIPE ALERT.

Try making these super-quick, healthy brownies that will satisfy a sweet tooth and keep your brain fueled on its nutritious delights.

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups black beans (1 15-oz can, drained and rinsed very well)

2 tbsp regular cocoa powder- feel no qualms in adding more

1/2 cup quick oats

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup pure maple syrup or honey or even agave nectar (if you fancy)

2 tbsp sugar (or just increase maple syrup to 1/2 cup)

1/4 cup coconut or vegetable oil

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup to 2/3 cup chocolate chips

optional: more chips, and some variety of berry because spring is here, folks!

HOW TO:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine all the ingredients (but the chocolate chips) in a food processor, and blend until completely smooth. A smoothie blender has worked for me, but I’ve heard they’re not quite as smooth or tasty (they’re still crazy yummy to me, so these may be some intense bakers’ opinions). Stir in the chips to the mixture, then pour into a greased 8×8 pan. Now sprinkle extra chocolate chips over the top. Cook the black bean brownies 15-18 minutes, then let cool at least 10 minutes before trying to cut. Makes 9 - 10 brownies!

 

 

By October, most of us have midterms splattered like bullet shots across our calendar. It’s a violent, yet universal truth. Now don’t get me wrong. I am very much a fan of the several weeks marked by transitioning colours that blend so perfectly into the backgrounds of our Instagram documentations of Pumpkin Spice Lattés. But this fine autumn month, sprinkled with midterms like the cinnamon atop your latté generally demands a heavy overhaul of organization systems. Gone are the days of taking apart your entire desk and piles of binders and notebooks before the eve of the midterm, because LifeStyle is going to get you as organized as you are in your dreams! (Just go with the flow in that you dream of organizing your desk.)

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First up, tackling the workspace. Everyone knows that clutter is a distraction. Suddenly that note you doodled on in last week’s lecture becomes a piece of art worth some serious contemplation. There is no time for philosophical and slightly narcissistic musings over your own doodle. Remove any and all clutter! A clean space is a clean mind, and a clean mind can stow away all of the lovely information you wish to keep there much more efficiently. You don’t have to necessarily purge yourself of all clutter, some may be worth a lot of money one day, but at the very least put it aside for the couple hours you’ve devoted to studying. Grab a basket or box and place it underneath your desk.

Currently, my textbooks, binders, and notebooks alike are in a dangerously high pile atop my printer. This is not an organization tip to abide by. In fact, you should avoid it all costs. If you were to follow in my future footsteps though, they would take you to the land of all things Swedish – IKEA. Several pieces are of minimal cost and worth crucial investment. I’m going out on a limb here saying that a magazine rack, or some shelving unit at all, is pretty much vital to your academic existence. Fortunately, staying on a budget is never an ordeal in IKEA, and we’ve even compiled a few must-see items for you on our tumblr.

Now that your desk appears less like a pigpen (no judgment here) and more like a high-powered CEO’s office (your Porsche is waiting outside), let’s get down to the mental business of eliminating your technically immortal enemy known as procrastination. A business cannot run smoothly without some concept of time, because how could you forget? Time is money, and time is precious. Without visualizing how many days left until that next midterm or assignment, it could be disturbingly easy to slip into the lackadaisical yet urgent state of catching up on (insert your weakness in terms of TV shows here). A day timer and calendar can be used to squash this temptation, especially if you colour code each test date in a colour that screams out, “URGENT” to you, like blood red or bellowing blue.

On the note of visualizing how much time you have left, make your goals and prizes just as eye-catching! If there is a post-midterm celebration requesting your attendance, draw yourself and your friends as a rowdy bunch of stickmen with joyously colourful letters saying, “FUN AWAITS.” Or a simplistic print out of a dessert you will soon devour.

Last but not least, the world of technology can be rewired into a palace of productivity. Apps are now your angels. The Ananke Timer will reveal your weaknesses – both the known and the unknown – in that it shows you just exactly how much time you spend on “Facebook breaks” after all. Secondly, there’s Stay Focused, which sets a time limit on certain websites before it blocks you for the day. Suddenly tumblr became a precious commodity to me. Lastly, the most cruel and twisted of all for any one who is deadly serious about stopping procrastination in its tracks: Write or Die. Essentially you can be on gentle mode, normal mode, or kamikaze mode, dependent on how serious you are. Gentle mode simply gives you sweet reminders if you stop writing. Normal mode ensures continuous writing with an alarm. Kamikaze mode will literally erase what you wrote if you choose to stop writing. A little masochistic for my liking, but everyone needs a little (correction: deathly) push, right?

Keep on studyin’ and keep on smilin’ (to the best of your ability).

Be sure to check out our tumblr for some sweet additions to organizing yo’ life (including some playlists to choose from to get the brainy juices flowing).

Tarun Sanda / Silhouette Staff

As students, in all honesty, we have not accomplished much in our lives.

We are in the process of becoming products of the system. Currently we are searching for our future roles in society.

We spend years of our lives learning and studying for the future.

We remind ourselves every day that we are doing what is necessary so that some day we can live the life we envisioned for ourselves.

Sound like enough motivation?

Hardly. Life as a student is usually stressful. There are deadlines, responsibilities, exams, assignments, and a multitude of things that we deal with on a daily basis. Occasionally the pressure gets to us, so we decide to seek a release. These moments are important, they are vital to keep you sane, to prevent overkill. It can relieve your stress, and the next day you return a more focused, and calm individual.

The problem arises when you get too fond of these moments. Suddenly an occasional drink may turn into a weekly endeavor. Soon it has consumed you.

You begin to make excuses that you may never experience such an opportunity again in life. This notion that our lives are very short and we must do what we please otherwise we might be missing out has been pressed upon us.

Living for the day, or the night, and not worrying about the consequences of the future. You only live once.

Stop for a second and imagine yourself underwater. You hold your breath as long as possible, but soon you need to reach the surface for that breath of fresh air.

At that moment, when you know you cannot hold your breath any longer, nothing else matters.

You do whatever it takes to get that breath of fresh air. It doesn’t matter what you were doing five minutes ago, it doesn’t matter what time of day it is, it doesn’t matter how great that party was last night. All you want is a single breath of fresh air. All that matters is what you have in the moment.

Sometimes memories aren’t so precious after all. Imagine yourself partying away your 20s. Soon you have no job, which in this day and age equates to no future.

Soon you’re old and sitting at the end of the bar wondering what could have been if you focused on what was important back then. Suddenly the great memories of your 20s don’t seem so comforting anymore, because once you come back to reality you realize that you have nothing. What matters most is what you have in the present.

Imagine a contrasting storyline. You put yourself through school, did what you needed to do to get that job you’ve always wanted. Suddenly the years have gone and the comforts of what you’ve accomplished sits.

There is no need to look back in time because what matters the most is what you have done with your life. What you have in the moment. The difference between the two moments is that the latter storyline gives you a permanent sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. The struggle is worth it once you look back and realize that what you have now is much better than what you had back then.

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