Many of us reflect on our mistakes and successes over the past years, while looking forward to the new year. So what are a few things that we all can do to help us go through this year as successfully as possible? 

1. Get a planner. Many of us believe that there are better things to do than wasting time writing in planners, and some of us just find it overwhelming to see everything we have to do. Nonetheless, writing it down and knowing due dates is better than forgetting about it completely. Planning out your life for the next day is not as bad as showing up late to class or forgetting a quiz. 

2. Don’t procrastinate. As we move into upper-level classes, the material gets tougher and tougher. To stop yourself from getting lazy, don’t procrastinate. The more work you pile up for yourself, the more likely you are not to study all the material. If you spread your work over a period of time, you will be able to take it one topic at a time while having enough time during the day to do other things. By doing this you leave some space to ask professors for help, assimilate the material better and are more likely do well on your exams. This point leads me into my third tip: 

3. Don’t pull all-nighters. All-nighters are terrible for your health and do not help with retaining information. And the after effect is even worse: you feel like a zombie. I have been known to fall asleep during one of my exams for 10 minutes because I was up for two days straight during finals. To avoid the possibility of falling asleep on your exam paper, don’t procrastinate and space your time out carefully. 

4. Self-care. Throughout the school year, you might forget about yourself. You start to eat junk food because it takes the stress away, or you sit in one place for six to seven hours because you have so much homework. Don’t let school consume you. Go take a 10 minute walk or dance to your favorite music. Don’t work yourself into a cave, because then studying gets lonely and loneliness is not fun. Make sure you get to hang out with your friends, watch a movie or go bowling – these activities are just as important as turning in an assignment on time. 

In high-school, teachers tell you that you can only choose two things out of three: sleep, study or be social, and many of us end up choosing sleep and study. I bring great news: you can actually do all three! If you plan your time wisely and you recognize when you need to study, sleep and be social, you can be more successful than if you just choose two and feel deprived of the other one.  

Balance your life, and don’t sell yourself short.