How to Avoid Burnout During Finals

This might be a little late in the semester I know—but I had finals to do too, okay! If you found this semester's finals to be especially rough, I have a few tips and tricks that will help you avoid the seemingly inevitable fate of every art school student; burn out. When you're constantly making things all the time with tight deadlines and turn around times, stress and dread just seem like part of the process. It really doesn't have to be. Let me show you how.

1. Time management. This is a skill I know I wish I learned a lot sooner. Time is the most valuable resource we have as students. While I learned my own method over time (involving using a daily planner and lots of spreadsheets) the learning center can help you fast track the process to create a method of time management that works best for you! If you’re already in the thick of it, and would prefer learning how to immediately get yourself out of the pit of despair, they also offer services to help you figure out how to catch up on assignments. They are an invaluable and massively utilized resource.
   
2. Make sure to schedule in hobbies and activities you enjoy. If you only work, it’ll fry your brain. You’ll almost definitely lose the motivation to make art if making art for a grade is the only thing you’re doing. Whether it’s another creative hobby, like writing or making music, or something more leisurely like gaming, making the time to do something fun goes a long way in avoiding burnout. Part of the creative process is also building your visual library, and enjoying media and art you personally enjoy. Using your spare time to watch movies, cartoons, or read a book about a subject you’re passionate about can fuel your inspirational fire and push you forward to the end of finals.
   
3. Stretch! I know you’re shrimping at your desk for long hours at a time. I do too. But that can cause a lot of problems down the line. It's important to take the time to get up, walk around, and do some stretches. I’m not saying you need to bring a yoga mat to your studio (though honestly I’m sure it would do wonders), but even simple wrist and neck stretches go a long way in making sure your body is flexible and not in constant pain all the time. The best areas to target are your back, neck, arms, hands and wrists especially. Fight off that carpal tunnel like the beast it is.
   
4. Set reminders. Not just for assignment deadlines, but for yourself. Did you realize during finals that you tend to forget to eat, drink water, or take your meds? Set an alarm for it! No one is going to hold you accountable to take care of yourself except for you. You only have one body your whole life, and no assignment or grade is worth neglecting it. You can also schedule breaks into your work time. It’ll help prevent the “I’ve been looking at this for too long and now I hate it” effect, and give you the chance to recharge. On the topic of recharging—
   
5. SLEEP. Your brain and eyes are muscles, and if you don’t let them rest they don’t have time to recover. Getting a full night's rest is crucial to making sure you aren’t absolutely miserable during finals season, as well as just being beneficial for your long term physical and mental health. But any sleep is better than no sleep at all. Personally, I prefer napping on the bean bags at the library (speaking of, they offer tea, coffee, and later hours during finals). The all-nighter isn’t worth it. I promise you. Sincerely, a student who has pulled a few too many all-nighters. <3