9 Easy Ways to End Writer’s Block Once and for All

Elli7 Comments

Writer’s block has probably affected all bloggers at some point. Sometimes, no matter how much we try, we just can’t think of something creative to write about.

I’ve struggled with this a lot too, especially recently, and am going to share with you some of the tricks I use to think of new ideas!

1. Explore Other Blogs

A great way to find inspiration is to look through some of your favourite blogger’s posts and see if they can give you any inspiration. Try to find blogs within your niche!

Keep in mind that you shouldn’t steal another blogger’s work, but can always use their idea and turn it into something unique to you.

2. Find Your Most Creative Time of Day

Everyone has a certain time of the day when they feel most active, and when their mind is flowing with ideas.

For example, I get the most ideas late at night. In fact, I probably wouldn’t have started this blog if I hadn’t stayed up an extra half hour the day before, since at the time I was brainstorming ways that I could share my passion.

Take advantage of this time and brainstorm as many ideas as you can, no matter how random or silly. You might be able to use them later!

3. Keep a Journal

Another simple tip is to keep a journal on your desk that’s dedicated to blog ideas.

Write all of your ideas, as well as the goals you want to achieve with your blog.

Inspiration can come at the strangest moments, so it’s best to be prepared to write them down!

4. Go on a Walk

Taking a break and smelling the fresh air is a good way to clear your mind, as well as a way to exercise.

Walk to the park, the beach, around the block, or anywhere that makes you happy. Don’t forget to bring your journal with you!

5. Ask a Friend

If you have friends who read your blog, they might have some ideas of other things you can write!

You could also ask your audience and other bloggers to give some ideas and pointers.

6. Change Your Workspace

If you work in the same spot every day, chances are that it can get a little boring at times. Try to change things up by going to a coffee shop, a park, or simply moving to another room.

Being in the same spot can feel uninspiring, and you’ll most likely have an easier time thinking of ideas if you change your routine every once in a while.

7. Go Outside of Your Niche

If you’re running out of ideas of things to write for your niche, try expanding your blog’s topics.

My blog initially used to just be about books, but I realized that books aren’t the only things I like writing about. I also enjoy inspiring and motivating others!

Your blog is unique, and should be a place where you can be creative and have fun, so don’t let a specific niche restrict you if you’re running out of ideas, even if only once in a while.

7. Exercise for Energy

Exercising is a great time to try coming up with ideas. Blood is flowing through your body, and you have less distractions than when you sit at your computer.

You can also try coming up with ideas after exercising. You’ll feel more energetic and awake, and your brain will be more focused and creative.

8. Relax Your Mind

Sometimes we just need to relax our mind.

Having a shower, watching a TV show or movie, playing a game, or just lying down on your bed. These are all different ways to relax.

Without having to concentrate on anything particular, your mind can wander and have time to think, which will make it easier to produce new ideas.

9. Spend Time With Yourself

Go somewhere or do something fun. Write in a journal about your deepest thoughts. Work on trying to understand yourself, your goals, and what makes you happy.

Get to know yourself, so that you can discover what you like, and also what you enjoy writing about.

Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash

Book Review – The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes – Is it Worth the Read?

Elli2 Comments

Coriolanus Snow has been given the honor of mentoring a tribute for the 10th annual Hunger Games. The Snow family has been struggling to keep their wealthy status ever since the war of the rebellion in Panem a decade ago, and winning the games would help him greatly.

However, the odds are not in his favor. After being assigned the female tribute from District 12, he decides he doesn’t stand much of a chance. As he and his tribute work together to create a good image, he starts to worry for what will happen to her in the arena, when her and the 23 other tributes are forced to fight to the death. The question is; what lengths will he go to in order to win this competition, and keep his reputation alive?

Who else has been eagerly awaiting the release of this book?

Ever since I had first heard that Suzanne Collins was writing an extra addition to the well-loved Hunger Games trilogy, I was bursting with excitement.

However, when it was revealed that the main character in this story would be none other than one of the Hunger Games’ biggest antagonists, President Snow, I was questioning whether this book would be worth my time. What makes this character important, and why would I care to read about him?

I was also worrying about how this story might ruin the original books for me. We always have that thought in the back of our minds when there’s a new book in a franchise that’s going to be released. Will this be worth reading, or will I regret ever opening it?

But I knew that this book was being written for a reason, and eventually decided that I would give it a try.

Now that I’ve finished it, I can safety say that I was not disappointed.

Not only did this book reveal some history behind the Hunger Games, but it also made me look at Coriolanus Snow in a new way.

Right after flipping the first page, I was immediately transported back to when I first read the trilogy. It gave me a wistful feeling of nostalgia, and I couldn’t put this new book down.

Reading this reminded me that characters are much more than what they appear to be on the surface. Also, looking from different characters’ points of view can really effect your perception on the story. I found myself sympathizing with Coriolanus more than I expected to, and he’s now surprisingly one of my favourite characters.

There’s a lot more about the Hunger Games that is explained in the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. You’ll understand more about how the games have been shaped over time, how the districts are perceived from the Capitol’s point of view, and most importantly how Snow had something to do with it all.

Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of the Hunger Games books (or movies), and it’s definitely worth the read!

Featured Image: Photo by Carolyn V on Unsplash

7 Tips For Working Under Pressure When Stressed

Elli5 Comments

You know that feeling, where there’s so much you have to do that it feels like you’re suffocating?

Or when people are all relying on you, and you worry that you can’t live up to their expectations?

Don’t worry, you’re not alone. The truth is, we’ve all experienced a type of this feeling, and I can safely say that it’s not the most fun.

Stress can impact our lives by making us more messy, and less careful and attentive. When we feel overwhelmed, we may end up cheating or skipping parts of our work just to finish. All we want is that feeling to be gone.

Unfortunately, there’s no magic solution that can rid us of stress immediately while working under pressure, but there are ways that we can learn to cope with it, and turn it into something more beneficial.

#1. Give Yourself Time to Breathe

We’ve all heard this one, haven’t we? “Just give yourself a break, and trust me, you’ll feel better!”

You might roll your eyes, saying that you aren’t able to do this, because you have too much work to do to even have time for a break. But when I say this, I don’t mean take a vacation or have an hour long bubble bath.

Just take a moment, – 10 seconds is even enough – close your eyes, and take a deep breath. In your mind, go through everything you need to do, every plan you have for the day.

Make it a goal for your to start working right when you open your eyes again. Don’t even hesitate for a second before standing up and doing what you need to do, or else that might just give you enough time to decide that you’ll wait until tomorrow.

#2. Perfect Timing

Once you’ve finally decided what you need to work on, the best thing to do is to write down a schedule of what you’re going to do for the day.

Give every task a designated time, so that you know exactly when you’ll need to do something.

When you write a schedule with certain times for every task, your mind will be able to see what you need to do more clearly, and it won’t all be a jumble of words in your head anymore. Organization will help calm the storm.

#3. Think Of Why You’re Stressed

Why are you stressed?

Is it for a multitude of reasons? Is there so much going on that you don’t know where to start?

Have you been procrastinating while the piles of work keep getting higher and higher, and now you don’t know what to do?

Are people relying on you to do something and you don’t want to disappoint them?

Working under pressure is never easy, but finding the reason behind the stress can help you see what needs to be done first, and what steps you need to take to get there.

#4. Stay Focused

It’s easy for your mind to wander off, or find things that it could be doing instead of the task.

That’s why it’s extremely important for you to make an effort to stay alert and pay attention to what you’re doing.

When you feel yourself dozing off and notice it, then snap your attention back to what you need to do. It’s easier said than done, but with enough practice, you’ll be able to work under pressure with pure focus.

#5. Don’t Neglect Your Body

If you aren’t feeling motivated, then I recommend taking a short nap, going for a quick run, or grabbing a glass of water and a bite to eat. We all need to fuel ourselves.

How else will we finish the tasks well if we aren’t taking care of our brain and body?

You should never neglect your health so that you can have more time to do work. Your energy levels will decrease, you won’t be as efficient, and you’ll feel horrible. Taking care of yourself will benefit your work pace and focus.

#6. Encourage Yourself

Telling yourself that it’s too hard will only make matters worse. Put effort into reminding yourself that you can do it, and that you’re strong enough to finish.

Remind yourself that it’s achievable, and you’ll probably see a difference in your attitude toward the task. Sure, it’s hard, but not impossible. If you keep trying, you’ll eventually find a way to finish it.

Think about how you’ll feel when you finish; you won’t be so stressed about it anymore!

#7. Treat Yourself

When you’ve finished all or even just part of the task, make sure that you reward yourself for your accomplishment!

Whether it’s something from eating a chocolate bar to going out with friends as a reward; it’s up to you.

Give yourself a goal to work towards so that there’s something fun to look forward to when you finish!

Will Books Become Obsolete in the Future?

Elli7 Comments

A question has been rattling my mind lately, and I feel a need to write about this topic.

Will books ever become obsolete?

People have been questioning the possibility of books disappearing as technology advances for a while now, so I’m going to share my thoughts on this matter, and explain what I think will happen in the future.

Possible Causes

At first glance, it seems obvious that the problem with books losing popularity is because younger generations aren’t as excited to read.

Though people might argue that this people losing interest in reading is a bad thing, I think it’s best to look from their perspective and see what could be causing this issue.

One of the biggest reasons that people might be avoiding books is from the development of technology. From podcasts to social media sites to search engines, we can now get information from anywhere at any time.

It’s hard for me to believe that there was a world without technology, since that’s what I grew up with. Imagine not having almost all the information available at your fingertips? Having to put effort into learning more about a topic, like going to a library to find books about it?

It makes sense that the younger generation is more interested in technology, since that’s what they’re used to. Just the same goes for older generations. They grew up with books as their main source for information and entertainment.

This means that books, especially non-fiction ones, don’t matter so much to the younger generations than they did before. You could argue that the internet’s information is less accurate than books, but this isn’t necessarily the case, since although the internet may have some unreliable information, students are learning more about internet safety and reliability now that it’s an important issue to address.

There is also another reason why children and teens may be less interested in books that I’ve recently noticed: could they just not have had a good experience with the first novel they’ve read?

Think about it this way – school systems tend to make students read assigned books that are usually classics. Those books are considered timeless, but it doesn’t feel that way to someone who can’t understand what’s going on because of the older kind of language used in the story, or because they need to take notes instead of just enjoying the book.

If this is frustrating to someone, and also their first time reading a novel or book of that genre, they probably won’t want to try reading books like that again. They now have bad memories associated with books, of struggle and lack of understanding.

So, now that we’ve looked into it more, doesn’t it make sense that students don’t pay as much attention to books as they do to other forms of entertainment? And the even bigger question: How can we change this, and keep books from becoming obsolete?

Resolving This Issue

One way we can fix this issue by targeting more fictional and even nonfiction books toward children and teens. Modern popular books are popular because of their readability, and because the plot is easier to follow. There are also characters that we can understand and relate to, and the story has never-ending suspense and discovery.

Books used in audio format may also be more popular than the printed format, since they’re more accessible and don’t require so much concentration.

I always wonder why some people don’t like reading the way I do, but I was lucky to have found books that fit my style from a young age, and my love of reading continues to grow as I get older.

That’s another a great way to help people enjoy books on their own terms; to let them find their style.

There are dozens of genres out there, so many that there’s bound to be one that each person likes. It’s exciting to find a book you’re engrossed in, and there’s a new adventure for you to go on each time you flip a page.

There’s a variety of books for people to read, and if we let others find ones that they’re interested in, then maybe there will be an increase in readers down the line.

In the end, I think everyone should take the time to find and read a good book. It’s especially important for children and teens to do this, since books can inspire us and help our creativity grow, and may come in handy in the future during university or for a job. What does avoiding both reading and technology do, except limit our view of the world?

Image: Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

What’s the Point of I.Q. Tests?

ElliLeave a comment

Recently, I started to become interested in finding out my I.Q.

I took multiple tests, and afterwards wondered how I could keep improving and changing the way I think to get a higher number.

I was so obsessed with making myself ‘intelligent’, that I forgot to think harder about the reason why I wanted to do better.

Why do I want to be in that top 5% of the population? Why are these numbers a measure of how well I’ll do in the real world? Is boasting the only reason I wanted a high I.Q?

When I took a moment to think and assess my motives a little deeper, I slowly began to realize how silly I was being.

From a young age, most of us are taught that the percentage of your grade is an indicator for how you’ll end up in the future. A part of this idea can be mixed up in our minds, after we hear about people who were skilled from a very young age, and became successful because of it. We can end up thinking; Find not something you’re passionate about, but something you can already do.

I’ve always carried a version of this message with me, and wanted to do the best I could. I actually really enjoyed school and every single subject, and knew since my first year that I wanted to work toward a more academically-inclined field.

It took me a while, but I realized that this message might not be the best one to follow. I had started becoming jealous of people who were better than me, because I didn’t know what I was doing wrong to put me below them.

Everyone wants to be the best, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, this is a great motivation to make us want to do better. But I took it a step too far, and threw my mental health into the mix.

After a while, I started looking at my grades that I should be proud of, and kept telling myself that I was bad at it. I told myself that I had to keep pushing myself to reach the top – wherever the top was. I felt a strong need to ultimately do better than anyone who dare oppose me.

This worked for a while, until my happiness started deteriorating. I looked at my friends as competitors. I saw everyone as a villain in my story; someone I needed to defeat to win the game. That’s what life was to me, a game with scores, winners, and losers.

Comparing myself to others became a habit, and I couldn’t look at another person my age without a sting of jealousy, and along with that, the realization that I was blaming others for the pain I inflicted on myself. I think that’s what hurt me the most, actually.

I discovered that this jealousy and fear of failure wasn’t getting me anywhere. If I really wanted to accomplish something, I should focus on myself instead of others.

How does all of this relate to I.Q?

My issue with I.Q. tests is that they compare you to the other billions of people in the world, and telling you how much better or worse you are than them with a type of intelligence. Some people might not know that these tests don’t accurately reflect your overall intellect, and no one likes the feeling of failure when compared to your peers.

Using this as a way to tell children and teens that they don’t have the skills to do something yet will obviously make them less confident in themselves and their ideas.

Yes, I.Q. tests show your basic intelligence in certain areas, such as math, recognizing patterns, etc. However, does this really make your ideas and opinions more or less valuable?

Intelligence tests cover the true meaning behind education and capability, which is not how much you already know, but how much you’re willing to learn.

Learning is what blossoms creativity, and what gives birth to new ideas and interests. We can’t dishearten people by telling them that their abilities have a limit. The truth is that everyone has the potential to change the world. Why should we divide people into groups and tell them that some are better and some are worse?

It’s true that some people find it easier to learn than others, but that doesn’t mean that the others can’t learn. People should be allowed to choose for themselves whether they’re capable of learning something or not.

My hypothesis is that the best system for grading our society is no system at all. What if we’re losing so many amazing and innovative ideas from people because they’re told that they aren’t good enough to give their opinions? Does everything we do have to be scored, or can we instead just be told how to improve?

I.Q. can also affect how people think of themselves in the opposite way. What if people think that a high I.Q. makes them better than others? Thinking you’re superior can lead to arrogance, and possibly pushing away potential friends and experiences. This could result the same as people ending up on the low side of the I.Q. spectrum; not wanting to learn anymore.

Having a high I.Q. could make people think that they have nothing more to learn, which is of course false, and limits the possibilities of what you can accomplish.

Everyone has more to learn, and you should never decide to stop educating yourself based on a number.

“People who boast about their I.Q. are losers.”

– Stephen Hawking

Image: Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash

32 Productive and Fun Things to Do During the COVID-19 Lock Down

Elli2 Comments

By now, a lot of people seem to be running out of things to do during the COVID-19 lock down.

We’re all searching for more opportunities and ways to communicate and entertain ourselves, but eventually, doing similar things every day is bound to start getting boring.

We all need a way to stay engaged, so this list is full of ideas for you to get started on!

#1. Start/Finish a Book

Is your house full of half-read books, or ones that you haven’t even opened yet? Now’s the time to get through them, and enjoy every moment of the book without distractions of work or chores.

#2. Find a New TV Show

There are tons of bingeable TV Shows out there, and most surely some you haven’t started yet. Since most people are getting so much free time, it’s certainly worth starting a new series without that guilty binge-too-much feeling following you around!

#3. Write A Story

Let your creativity shine by putting the masterpiece story that’s been rattling around in your mind onto paper.

#4. Find A New Hobby

There are tons of new things for you to do that you might not have done yet. Anything from cooking to knitting, you choose!

#5. Take Fun Personality Tests

There are so many different personality tests to be found on the internet. They are a great way to have fun and also get to learn more about yourself.

#6. Sit Outside

Grab some coffee and go sit outside. Breathing in the morning air will make you more awake to be more productive throughout your day.

#7. Start a Blog

I highly recommend starting a blog if you haven’t, especially if you enjoy writing and want to share your opinions with the world. Having a blog will make you think more creatively and keep you busy, and you get to write about anything that makes you happy.

#8. Spend Time With Pets

Do you have a pet that’s begging for attention 24/7? Give them some love each day, and your relationship will grow overnight.

#9. Video Games

Video games are fun, entertaining, and interactive! They’re also great thing to keep your mind busy, and improve your concentration.

#10. Dance!

We all love to dance, don’t we? Listen to your favourite songs, and dance like nobody’s watching!

#11. Learn a New Skill

Do you want to learn a new skill? Now’s the time to start practicing!

#12. Start a Journal

Writing in a journal is a great way to vent your emotions and help you reflect on how you’re feeling. Writing in a journal even a couple of times a week will keep your thoughts from clouding your mind.

#13. Play a Board Game With Your Family

Break out your favourite game and spend time with your family!

#14. Make Plans for Next Year

Planning for next year or after quarantine will keep you organized and prepared for what you want your soon future to look like.

#15. Consider Your Goals

Think about who you want to be and what you want to do. What are your goals for the future? You can always still find ways to reach them, even if it’s from home.

#16. Paint Something

Painting is a great way to relax and give you a new perspective of the world around you. I highly recommend this as a way to relax and think.

#17. Find a Podcast

Podcasts keep us entertained while also educating us, and finding one that you’re interested in will make you think deeper about a topic.

#18. Make Presents for Your Loved Ones

It would be so fun to make presents for your loved ones for when you see them again! Find things to make or give to them, and I’m sure it will make their day.

#19. Put Your Crafting Skills to Use

Come up with an idea or craft that you can sell to earn some extra money, while staying entertained and productive.

#20. A New Health Plan

Are you just waiting for the perfect moment to start that diet? Have you been stalling when trying to change your habits?

Now’s the perfect time to be productive and create a new health plan!

The best way to begin a health plan is to start off slow. All you need to do is take the first step, and then keep going until you’ve finally made it a habit!

#21. Create an Exercise Routine

Most people are either enjoying their time off right now or are bored out of their minds. Either way, your health is extremely important, especially in times like these.

We can’t go to the gym anymore, meet up with friends, or go on hikes, but we still need to find ways to exercise.

If you aren’t used to having an exercise routine, I recommend writing a schedule right now.

Some fun things you can do are use the equipment you have at home, find workout videos to follow online, and go for a run around your neighborhood (be sure to social distance if you do this)!

#22. Learn New Ways to Be Grateful

Each of us have things that we should be thankful for.

Even if it’s simple things, like that show you watched the other day, or something bigger like being with your family at this time, we should all recognize this and be grateful that we still have these things during this lock down.

#23. Spring Clean Your House

It’s spring now, can you believe it? This year has been flying by really fast, and now it’s time to do your yearly spring cleaning!

Cleaning your room and house can be tricky at first, but as soon as you start listening to your favourite songs or podcasts and get started, you’ll finish in no time!

#24. Bubble Bath

We all need a time to relax and keep our calm, so why not take a bubble bath?

#25. Smile!

This pandemic can take a toll on our happiness, so let’s try to fight back by smiling and being happy!

#26. Strengthen Your Mind

Riddles, puzzles, tests, you name it!

Download a brain workout app, work on the rubix cube you own, or start that crossword book; the choice is yours. Let’s all keep our brains active, so that when the pandemic is mostly over, we can come back focused and ready to work again.

#27. Get Some Work Done

Do you work from home? Do you have online school? A project that you’ve never finished? Let’s end the procrastination and finish what we need to do!

#28. Be an Entrepreneur

Now’s a great time to act on starting your idea for a business. You can start a blog or website, or work on your idea while you have the free time.

#29. Change Your Routine

Feeling bored? Do something a little differently each day. Spice your day up a bit by trying something new or changing your routine!

#30. Learn Something New Every Day

A thing I’ve been doing a lot lately is making sure that I learn something new and interesting each day.

You could do this by looking up random facts, or searching for the answer to a question of yours. Curiosity and creativity are the recipe for success.

#31. Join the Online Community

There are many different online communities that you can join, and most of them are very welcoming.

There are communities for everything you’re interested in, so you can talk to others about what you love and hear about other peoples’ lives from all over the world!

#32. Video Chat or Call Friends and Family Members

We need to make sure we keep talking to others, even if it can’t be in person.

Make sure to frequently contact the people you care about so that you’ll know what’s going on in each other’s lives, and won’t feel out-of-touch.

Remember to wash your hands, social distance, and be safe!

Image: Photo by Jess Bailey on Unsplash

6 Reasons Why Reading Increases Positivity (Guest Post) — lifesfinewhine

Elli5 Comments

Thanks to Pooja for letting me guest post on her blog! Check out my guest post about 6 Reasons Why Reading Increases Positivity on her blog, lifesfinewhine.

By Elli from NeedtoRead Everyone strives to be more positive, happy, and healthy. It’s a goal we all have in mind, and subconsciously try to work towards day by day. But what if I told you that reading isn’t always just a pastime, and can actually help you obtain this goal? #1. Different Points of […]

6 Reasons Why Reading Increases Positivity (Guest Post) — lifesfinewhine

15 Helpful Tips to Stay Focused When Studying

Elli3 Comments

You know the feeling; your motivation is gone, and you’re unable to focus on finishing your work.

You keep telling yourself that you’ll do it later, when you’re able to concentrate. Then, you just spin yourself in an endless cycle of worry and frustration.

Staying alert when studying can be difficult, but these 15 tips and tricks will help you fix this issue, and become a studying wizard!

#1. Avoid Your Phone

One of the biggest things that can distract people from staying focused is the internet and social media.

If having your phone or any other distracting technology around you can take your eyes off the prize, and keep you from finishing your work.

A good way to keep from going on social media is to set a timer for however long you like, and until that timer ends, you aren’t allowed to check or even touch your phone.

You can also find somewhere to hide it that will be hard to reach, or give it to a family member and make them promise not to give it back to you until you’re finished.

#2. Get a Good Sleep

We all know that a lack of sleep will make it harder for you to focus on your studies the next day, which is why the right amount of sleep is important for every person to get.

An adult needs an average of 8 hours of sleep each night, and children and teens need longer in order for their brains to function well the next day.

Create a schedule of when you should fall asleep and wake up, so that you’ll never run into this problem again!

#3. Eat Right

What you eat greatly impacts your energy levels. To become more focused (and have better overall health) be sure to only be putting healthy and nutritious things on your plate.

Make sure you get the right amount of vegetables, protein, and fruit each day, and soon enough you’ll be feeling happier and more energetic!

#4. Enough Exercise

Just like eating the right foods, having a healthy exercise routine can make you more energetic and focused.

In fact, exercising doesn’t just change how you look, but also how you feel, act, and perceive things!

Try to exercise every day, even for a short while, and eventually you’ll see a change in your body and your attitude.

Remember to incorporate different areas of exercise, like flexibility, cardio, and strength, to feel an overall change.

#5. Water, Water, and More Water!

Staying hydrated will increase your energy levels, complexion, and productivity.

The average amount of water a person is supposed to drink is roughly eight glasses per day.

Be sure to fill you body up with water to look and feel healthy, and to give you the energy to pay more attention to your work.

#6. Have a Workspace

Having a designated workspace will make you more focused when you have to do a task.

You know that when you sit down at this desk or go to that place, you’re meant to be working and nothing else.

Make sure that your workspace is comfortable, clean, easily accessible, and has all of the materials you might need.

#7. Look Over Your Work

Take a look through everything you have to do. Looking at what you need to study all at once can be overwhelming, so be sure to break your work into smaller tasks and work from there.

Once you see all of the things you need to do, you’ll have a clearer idea of how to get started.

#8. Create a Schedule

A helpful tip for studying is to create a schedule for you to do every day.

This can be a list of things you need to do each day or week, and also be sure to add a checklist of all the things you need to complete.

Having a schedule will help keep your time organized, and over time you’ll find it easier and easier to keep this habit.

#9. Take Frequent Breaks

Staying focused for a long time is really difficult, especially if you aren’t motivated in the first place.

If this is the case for you, I recommend working as much as you can for 45 minutes, and then taking a break for 15 minutes to take a quick walk, talk with a family member, or grab something to eat.

Breaks will help us stay focused for longer, since doing a task for a long time can tire your brain out and make you want to stop. Taking a break will make you excited to get back to doing your work!

#10. Always Take Notes

It’s so hard to focus when you have to read through pages and pages of information, so a great idea is to take notes as you read!

Get a designated journal for each subject or used lined paper, and write down all of the key points in bullet point form.

Taking notes forces your brain to actually think about the information that you’re learning while you’re writing it down. This way, you’ll be able to retain more information and stay engaged in your task instead of getting side-tracked.

#11. Work in a Group

This tip varies from person to person. Some people are more motivated working by themselves then working in a group.

Don’t decide to do your work in a group of distracting people, and only do your work with people that are motivated like you. The worst thing you can do is be distracted from your task by a friend.

Working alone is also a great option if that’s what you prefer, but working in a group can give you a bigger reason to do what you’re supposed to, since you don’t want to be the only one who’s slacking off.

#12. Look at Inspirational Quotes from Successful People

People that we admire can greatly influence our mood and preferences. Find someone of good influence and read some of their famous quotes!

When you learn more about how famous people got to be where they are, you can start to develop your own ideas for what you want to do and where you want to be.

Remember to only do this for a short while, since you want to get started on your work as soon as possible!

#13. Use Goals to Motivate You

When do you want to get these tasks done? Where do you want to be in a year, and how will completing this help you get there?

If you don’t do something that could help you in the future, there will most likely be a point where you’ll regret that choice.

#14. Record Your Progress

Have you become more motivated since yesterday? Have you done more work than you were expecting?

Write this down in a journal so that you can record your progress and see how your doing.

You should also record how you’re feeling each day, since if you’re unhappy, there could be certain things impacting this that you should start avoiding.

#15. Start Right Away

Without a moment’s hesitation, the best solution to starting something is to start right now. Telling yourself that you’ll do it later is not the answer.

Stand up, walk over to your workspace, and get started!

Image: Photo by Green Chameleon on Unsplash

The 5 Easy Steps to Writing An Efficient Schedule

Elli2 Comments

Schedules are extremely helpful when it comes to planning, routines, and productivity. Most of us even use them on a daily basis!

But the question is; how do you write the perfect and efficient schedule?

Here are the 5 steps to writing a schedule that you’ll be sure to follow.

#1. Where to Write a Schedule

What are you supposed to use to write a schedule?

There are many different places to write a schedule that will keep you motivated, like:

  • Planner
    • To write a schedule that changes every day or week, I recommend writing these in your planner, so that you can easily change your layout for each week.
  • Calendar
    • A Calendar is where I write the basis of what I’m going to do each day. Though this isn’t a very good choice for in-depth schedules, it’s definitely helpful if you have a lot of places to go, and need to write out their dates and times.
  • DIY Schedule For Wall/Bulletin Board
    • If you want your schedule to be up somewhere that you can see it, creating your own DIY Schedule on a piece of paper, or finding a format from the internet to print out, is a great way to do this. These types of schedules work for daily, weekly, monthly, and even yearly planning.
  • Phone
    • A place to keep your schedule on-the-go is on your phone! Put your schedule into your calendar, or set alarms for certain times!

#2. Write the Title and Steps

When you first start making your schedule, start off by writing the basics of what you’re going to be doing. If you need to finish your homework, a blog post, or a task, write each of those things as a basis for your schedule.

Underneath those titles for the tasks, you should go more into detail for what you’re doing by writing the steps you need to take to complete it.

To make your schedule more personalized, you can do fun things like colour code the tasks, use a neat style of writing, and more!

#3. Time Management

Now you need to figure out when you can do each of the tasks on your schedule.

First of all, you need to think of what day you’ll start. Next, you’ll need to think about what you’re going to be doing each day and if you’re going anywhere, so you can incorporate your schedule into each day efficiently.

What free time do you have during the day? What time do you want to complete each of the tasks?

I recommend writing the basic time frame next to a task of how long it will take to complete it. This time frame might not be completely accurate if you’re not sure how long something will take you, so feel free to just estimate it.

#4. A ‘Did’ List

People use checklists for a lot of things, and it can be fun to check off a task when you finish it! But there’s also another tactic that I consider more motivating, which is making a ‘Did’ list.

This is a list of things you’ve done each day, so that you can see what you’ve accomplished in one spot. Instead of crossing things out, you’re writing them down to see how far you’ve come!

I use this kind of set-up for school work by writing down each time I’ve finished a certain area of work, and I highly recommend it.

#5. Get Into the Right Mindset

To keep up a routine or schedule requires you to feel motivated and confident that you will stay focused.

If your schedule is too hard to follow, you’ll have trouble feeling excited to do it when you have to.

Staying healthy and taking multiple breaks in your schedule to relax is a great way to combat procrastination and keep good habits.

Conclusion

Now that you’ve successfully completed creating a schedule, it’s time for you to get started!

Hopefully this list has helped you with creating a good routine for yourself to stay on. Did you follow these steps, and if so, did they help you?

Image: Photo by Emma Matthews Digital Content Production on Unsplash

Creating Lists for Friends – Inspired by ‘Since You’ve Been Gone’

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Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson is by far one of my favorite books of all time. This isn’t just because of its perfect story, or its captivating characters.

It’s also because it’s given me and a friend of mine a new fun way to spend our time!

Description:

Since Emily and Sloane became friends, Emily has been encouraged to forget her worries and find ways to be more adventurous with her friend.

Everything is going perfectly, and right when summer begins, Emily knows that she’s going to have the time of her life now that she has a new best friend to spend it with.

But something strange is going on. All of the sudden, Sloane isn’t answering her phone, and her house is now empty. Emily’s friend has disappeared out of nowhere.

The only thing she has from Sloane is a letter; a checklist of tasks, varying from simple to scary, that would usually be too nerve wracking for her to complete.

But what if there’s a chance that completing them all will help her find her friend?

Before you decide to make a fun list of things to do for your friend, I recommend reading Since You’ve Been Gone first, so you’ll get the gist of what I’m writing about.

When I talk about making lists, what exactly do I mean?

Tasks that will make your friend nervous, but will give them a sense of validation when they do it.

Some of the examples that my friend has made me do are:

  • Have a dance party by listening to ABBA songs.
  • Tell someone a secret you want to tell them but are too scared to.
  • Go to a sewer drain on the side of the road and scream; “Pennywise, I challenge you to a dance off!”

The reason I’m sharing this is because I think it’s a fun and easy way to find things to talk about with your friends, and you get to be creative when making it!

The Don’ts of Writing A Friend’s Checklists

When making these lists, have fun and don’t forget that you want your friend to have fun too!

Don’t choose to write about something that will make your friend or someone else feel uncomfortable or get someone hurt, because that’s not the point of making these lists.

Never force anyone to do something they don’t want to do, and be respectful of people’s rights when writing ideas down.

Also, don’t do anything that might get someone into danger, trouble, or is illegal.

The point is to break out of your shell and have something to do when you’re bored; not to get anyone in trouble or cause problems.

The Dos of Writing A Friend’s Checklists

It’s best to make the tasks on the list vary from easy to difficult.

Write some fun ideas down, and create some that they’ll have to put more effort into doing. The amount of tasks to write down is completely up to you!

When I make these lists with my friends, we set a date where we try to complete it by. We put our best efforts into completing them, but know that we don’t have to do them if we don’t want to.

Another option would be to theme your list! Some theme examples are food, reading, music, and fun!

If you decide to do this activity, let me know what you think! Since You’ve Been Gone is a great read, and I highly recommend it.