Here We Go Again

The spring semester is beginning, which is simultaneously a very exciting and very scary thing. Last night I found two of my professors had posted the syllabus for the class so naturally I skimmed them to see exactly what I was getting myself into. At first, it was all excitement for the beginning semester and for learning new things. But it was quickly followed by stress and mild panic as I beheld the assignments that await me in the coming weeks. Let me tell you, it does not look pretty.

One good thing I have going for me is that I am taking one less class than I normally would. This semester I made the (slightly difficult) decision to enroll in only 15 credit hours, or 5 classes, instead of 18 credit hours, or 6 classes. Hopefully this means I will have a slightly less stressful semester and be able to focus on other things that aren't homework, while also getting all my homework done.

This past semester I found myself growing more and more frustrated with myself and how I was never able to complete all the readings assigned for each class I was enrolled in. Yes, most of the readings were extremely boring and the professor arguably assigned way too much, but there still should be no reason for me to not get everything done. In the end I was just harming myself and my success as a student.

I always like to claim to be the smart, book obsessed character that you see in movies, such as Hermione Granger. But in reality, Hermione would be disappointed in the lack of effort I have been putting into my studies. Yes, I am well aware that Hermione is a fictional character and has no idea who I am, but you get the point. Am I really being a student if I don't truly pursue knowledge and strive to learn more from my classes? My grades may make it seem like I am doing just fine, but I always end the semester feeling tired of learning, instead of filled with new knowledge.

We could argue that partly this is the fault of the education system as well as the adjustments we have had to make due to the ongoing pandemic. Zoom class really is no fun and the bar is set rather low when there is no face to face interaction with professors. But I think it might be time to stop making excuses. Don't get me wrong, I'll continue to make excuses because I know I can't change my behaviors overnight, but I have hope that I can make most out of my classes this semester by doing all the work and readings, even when they bore me.

I remember reading a post on Instagram about the new semester, and it was actually inspiring in a way. I have been given this gift of a new semester, this new opportunity to learn and find my place in the world. Why not take advantage of the opportunities available to me? Give my 100% instead of my usual 67% on good days. Read, or at least thoroughly skim, every page of the readings. Try and work on creative writing pieces before the day they are due. Most of this may depend on how much time I have between classes, work, and sleeping, but as I said above, I should have more time.

Hopefully, this blog post will hold me accountable for my actions this semester. It can be so easy to talk and write about being motivated but fail to show up when it comes to putting in the work. I would rather not be one of those "do as I say not as I do" people so I have high hopes for this semester. Standby for the "I take it back" blogpost (that is definitely not coming, don't standby). Let's beat procrastination one semester at a time.

May your professors be ever in your favor.

-Rachel