Written by: Adrienne Olivia
I’m goddamn tired, and you probably are, too. Between schoolwork, resume building activities, loan paying jobs, and if you’re anything like me, a complex cocktail of mental illnesses, burnout before the end of the semester is inevitable. I think most students start to feel done, for lack of a better term. We start focusing from one thing we have to do to the next, which means that anything that might nourish, soothe, or replenish us is moved to the end of our perpetually growing to-do lists. Though a full on vacation, or even a full eight hours of rest a night might sound undoable, there are still some tiny things we can do every day that can help us reach that finals finish line without fully burning out.
These are tiny tips—as in tips that do not take up more than five minutes, and take minimal planning and effort. I’m not here to help with actual solutions to chronic fatigue, I’m here to give teeny tiny bite-sized ideas that anyone could try on whim to try to make life a bit more manageable right now—because personally, that’s the only kind of thing I have time for myself.
1. Check the weather before you leave the house
The more Spring like it gets, the more I see people wearing outfits that aren’t setting themselves up to have a successful day. It’s common to see students dragging around a parka on a five0-degree day, walking through the rain in a pair of Birkenstocks, or wearing shorts on a day that started warm but quickly dips below freezing. And I am one of these students—I constantly “Dress for the weather I want, not the weather I have,” and this totally screws up my day, because instead of focusing on what I need to be doing, I’m focusing on how uncomfortable I am. This also means I am much more likely to head home rather than to stay out and be productive. So take that one minute to check the weather so you can mindfully dress for the weather you have.
2. Add an accessory to your “I had five minutes to get to class” outfit.
We all have days where we wake up late to class and rush out the door wearing an outfit that doesn’t speak to us on an emotionally fulfilling level but is fine “just for class.” The problem is, at least for me, these days become the majority of mornings as the semester progresses, meaning most days, I don’t love how I look. That is super draining, isn’t it?
I might not be able to wake up a half-hour earlier to get ready to my full heart’s content, but I could wake up like, one minute earlier to put on a pair of earrings—that’s super doable! This small act goes a long way in how we perceive ourselves, which really helps with motivation when we are feeling our most tired.
3. Clean something, not everything
It took me two weeks to change my clock from daylight savings time—this is an analog clock, I literally had to press one button, and it took less than 10 seconds. Why did I wait so long?
I’m a total believer in that mindset that our outer existence reflects our inner reality. With that said, I know my regular cleaning schedule gets kicked to the curb the second I start to feel overwhelmed—which only ends up making me more overwhelmed. I know it is impossible to get myself to KonMari my house as the end of the semester draws to an end, but I can do little things when I can to make my environment feel less chaotic, which makes me feel more in control of myself, as well.
4. Check your bank account.
Just do it. Right now. Open a new tab and just see what is in there—a little extra awareness of what your spending right now will pay off big time.
5. Answer the messages you’ve been mindlessly avoiding
I have a bad habit of neglecting the messages I get on Facebook Messenger. I don’t know why it’s just this app—but those little red notifications build up, and as more time passes, it gets harder and harder for me to face answering them because know I will have to explain why I didn’t answer them earlier.
For you, this could be your Outlook email, your texts, your calls, whatever—I think we all can fall into that trap of avoiding answering messages that would take us less than a minute to respond to. We all have enough going on, we don’t need those little red notifications to bother us any longer, so spend five minutes catching up on messages and practicing your “sorry I didn’t answer this sooner” voice.
6. Brain dump
This is the only piece of advice I’ll give that could take more than five minutes. The point of the brain dump is to dump everything that you know you need to/want to/should do down on one page. This includes looming due dates, errands, appointments, meetings, etc. This really helps your brain take a moment to decompress, and not feel so responsible for keeping track of all the things you need to do alone. If you are feeling ambitious, try prioritizing your list of things you need to do so you know what needs your most attention first.
7. Call whoever is proud of you
Though I hope that everyone has more than one person that is proud of them, I suggest calling that one person who will always pick up the phone for you. For me, that’s my mom. Hearing from her helps me put things into perspective, and remember that failure is most likely not looming ahead, and hearing about her life reminds me to not limit my focus on myself. A quick call to someone you trust can help us remember why we are putting ourselves through so much stress in the first place, which for me, at least makes my burnout feel more meaningful.