HOW TO HAVE A PRODUCTIVE HOLIDAY

Throughout the school year, you are so constantly bombarded with a lot of work you can’t wait for the holidays to arrive. By the time holidays come, however, it’s another story because now you’re so tired all you want to do is sleep all day everyday.

When school was in session, you’d have probably told yourself, if only I had more time, I’d do this and that- I’d plan and study better, exercise more, practice my skills more etc. Unfortunately, the holidays pass by as usual and the cycle continues.

This is exactly what goes on with many students and holidays get wasted while school days remain hectic. Now don’t get me wrong. Being productive during holidays isn’t equal to studying, overworking or getting so busy there’s no time to rest.

After all, the only reason you’re going on a break is so you can reflect, relax and prepare for the new school year. Having a productive holiday is simply getting things done and feeling great about your achievements.

Here are 6 tips that will help you have the most value for your time during the holidays:

1. Have one major goal: For the most of summer, you don’t get a proper schedule for your time and so you just do whatever you want whenever you want.

However, tackling a particular project- something that constrains your time a bit- may be the best thing you can do to keep yourself productive.

Scout for internships, summer schools, youth camps etc. Apply to volunteer or get a job. Just find something that’ll put some structure around your holiday so you can work everything else around it.

This way, you’re more conscious of your time and can channel the rest towards the most important tasks.

2. Plan: The holiday can pass by unnoticed if you’re not conscious and intentional about the activities you’ve planned. As soon as your summer break starts, make a visual representation of what you’d like to achieve.

You can create bucket list of places you want to go or a vision board of things you would like to do before the break ends. Plan each morning, make daily to-do lists and diligently set up your work space.

The holiday is the perfect time to start a habit tracker. This can include the habits you want to incorporate to your life such as resetting your sleep schedule to wake up early and go to bed at a specific time.

3. Declutter: During the school year, it’s possible to acquire so many papers, notes, pictures and documents without realising. So spend some to reorganise your devices (phone, tablet, laptop), rearrange some things, delete the others.

4. Study: Even though this shouldn’t be the main highlight of your summer holidays, it is definitely not a bad idea to review your notes for the previous year and read ahead for your next year classes.

Prepare for the new year by making a study plan before hand if you already have access to your time-table. Find study materials for each class and organise them into folders. All this will give you more confidence in school when you resume.

5. Grow: If you’ve read the post on “HOW TO BUILD A SKILL SET IN UNIVERSITY”, you will understand that developing a set of abilities is one of best investments you can make for the future.

So go ahead to to take an online class for a skill you’ve always wanted to learn. Practice a language especially if you’ll be going abroad for the holiday. Remember to not do too much work and to remain flexible.

6. Rest: Last but not the least, take enough time to sleep well and spend quality time with yourself and with your loved ones. Don’t set unreasonable goals and pressure yourself into anxiety and distress.

The summer break is for you to revise your goals and aspirations, make necessary research, start new projects, reflect, prepare and equip yourself for the year ahead.

What major projects will you be working on this summer? Let me know in the comments.