5 Tips to Combat Senioritis

Has senior year hit hard? Feel a loss of motivation? Senioritis is all too real. You may be so focused on the future that you stop engaging in the present. However, it doesn’t have to stay that way. Here are five ways to help combat senioritis. 

1. Stay on top of your day-to-day responsibilities
You may find yourself not keeping up with your daily classwork and responsibilities because you aren’t focused on the present. If you allow your work to pile up, you suddenly may find you have more on your plate than you can handle. Pacing yourself with your work is more important than ever. Using calendars and to-do lists will make the day-to-day process much easier to go through.  

2. Set attainable goals
Setting goals that are far too difficult to attain will lead to burn-out and unimaginable stress. That’s why it is especially important to have ambitions you can follow through with and achieve. According to an article written by the Harvard Business Review, the best way to make big changes is to start small with micro habits. “By breaking down an ambitious job into smaller, more achievable ones that you build over long periods of time, micro habits help you complete big goals.”* For example, setting aside 10 minutes to do homework without your phone is a great micro habit to start with. Eventually you can work up that time until you are spending all of study hall doing homework without looking at your phone. 

3. Challenge yourself to try something new
It may be easy to fall into a routine and lose drive for the things around you; keeping yourself stimulated is a good way to stay involved.  Joining the outdoor club on a hike or ski day, learning a new instrument, and giving a testimony are great ways you can keep your mind engaged in the present. “The way I challenged myself for senior year was trying out for Varsity Volleyball,” Sandra Arlt reflects. “I wasn't sure if I could do it, but I put my mind, heart, and effort into tryouts and I made it on the team! I had a lot of fun and it helped make my senior year more enjoyable.”

4. Take a break when you need it
While challenging yourself is a good way to keep up, taking a break when you need it is also perfectly okay. Deadlines may be important, but your physical and mental well-being are just as much a priority. The first step to de-stress is finding something that rejuvenates you, rather than just scrolling through your phone. Going on a walk, reading a book, or spending time with a friend. “A good way to replenish is to leave campus for the weekend, to just disconnect and get away,” Noah Sturges suggests.

5. Enjoy the present moment
These high school experiences are only going to come by once, and whatever you make of them will last forever. “Live in the moment. Because once these moments are gone, you’ll never get them back,” Love Pickle says. Set aside time for your friends and family, write appreciation notes for your teachers, and celebrate how far you’ve made it in life. You will soon be marching down the aisle at graduation, so make the most of the time you have left in high school!
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Jacqueline Kobagaya, Student News Team
*Source: https://hbr.org/2020/01/to-achieve-big-goals-start-with-small-habits