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jessJess writes about how to beat procrastination Why you shouldn’t procrastinate!
We have all been victims of procrastination at some point! Putting something boring or important off until later that day or week. You then inevitably forget to do it and wind up doing it bad quality at the last minute. I can’t lie. I have procrastinated doing this article, so I have decided to write this article to help people who suffer from procrastination. The university of procrastination says that 98% of people have procrastinated at some point and 76% of these people are students procrastinating studying for an important test. This is an issue because it leaves people staying up until midnight looking at maths problems that they will forget the next day due to tiredness. The major disadvantages of procrastination are: You could run out of time. This one's self explanatory. You put your task off until the day it is due and you don’t finish it. Something could come up. You may have a wonderful plan to get something done at the last minute but still finish it, however life may get in the way and something else has to be done and you have no time left to do the other task. Risk of missing out. When you leave something to the last minute (instead of doing it while planning to do it), you risk missing out on something fun. An example is you may receive an invitation to a party that looks really fun but you have to say that you can’t go because you have to finish your assignment. The next day you have to put up with scrolling through social media and seeing how much fun the You will not work well under pressure. If we are honest with ourselves, we know that our work is done better when you have taken the time to do it. Time can be the difference between an A and a C!others had at that party yet you still haven’t finished the assignment! You miss the chance to speak to your teacher. Any teacher would be happy to answer questions and give you feedback on your tasks before the due date. When you procrastinate you miss this chance and if you find yourself with a question the night before your teacher may not be able to help you in time. Some argue that it can be beneficial to your work if you procrastinate. Some of these reasons are: Waiting until the last minute can make you focus. I wouldn’t agree with this statement because it can also make you stressed and tried which impacts you in a bad way. It makes you lower your expectations. This is definitely not a good thing as you may get used to lower grades which will impact your overall motivation and academic achievements. Procrastinating makes other things seem easier. This is true as you think of all of the other things you can do when procrastinating. Although this is true it just makes the dreaded task harder because you are leaving it later and closer to the due date. Now for the biggest question, ‘how do i stop procrastinating?’. Well, there are many ways to stop this. Some are: Break it up. You can stop procrastinating by breaking up the work into smaller chunks and doing it over time. Reward yourself. There are many ways to reward yourself. For example you could put a lolly at the end of a paragraph and when you finish it you can eat the lolly. This will help you to keep focused. Another effective way to reward yourself is to do the task for 20 mins and then watch you favourite show for half that time. This will help you get it done faster because the longer you work, the longer you can watch the show or play a game. Work from the hardest tasks to the easiest ones. Most of us would start working on easy and fun homework and put off the hard stuff … but, if you switch that around and tackle the hard stuff first you will have something to look forward to. Block out distractions! This is probably the number one cause for procrastinating. You can block out distractions by putting your phone on silent then move it out of your eye site and reach. Annoying little siblings are hard to get away from but, believe it or not, it is possible. If they are yelling and screaming ask them to move outside or you can move outside. A great trick is to give them a five dollar note and tell them to stand with it against the wall holding it there with their forehead. Whoever stays there the longest without dropping the note or talking wins the money! You may lose five dollars but at least you got some quality work done! Music is good along as it has no words as you will end up listening to the words and singing along instead of reading your textbook. I hope that all of these tips and tricks can help you beat procrastination and you can now see why it is important not to procrastinate! Chloe
Chloe writes about how bigger is not better!
Bigger isn’t always better
Chloe Nguy explores how society has made it so much harder to maintain a healthy diet through the “bigger is better” mindset, and gives advice on how to eat properly. We’ve all been there before. Opening up the fridge and coming across a choice. On one hand, the leftover Big Mac and on the other, an apple. The choice should be a no-brainer. You pick the burger, because it simply just tastes better! I’m not going to pretend I’m the idealistic health guru, because I’m far from it. In fact, I’ve kept the Big Mac mentality for a long time, but learning about the impacts our diet can have not only on us now but in the future completely flipped my perspective. However, society can make something as simple as eating healthier way harder than it’s meant to be. In this day and age everywhere you look “bigger is better”. Whether it be upgrading from a queen to a king bed or getting a large coke instead of a regular, it’s simply imbedded in our lifestyle. But perhaps the worst part of this mindset is to do with food itself. With large portion sizes and junk foods becoming increasingly more common, the health of teens and kids everywhere is deteriorating. According to a study by the National Cancer Control Indicators, more than one million children and young people in Australia from 2-17 years old are overweight and obese. Why is unhealthy eating so bad? Although it may seem fine to gorge on all kinds of snacks now, it can come back to haunt you in the future. Not only does it cause weight gain when metabolism slows down, but it can also cause some serious diseases and conditions that are often fatal. Some of the most common are things like type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, and heart disease. You shouldn’t forget that it can also start affecting your life now. Eating the wrong things can cause breakouts in skin, weight gain and and an appearance you are not satisfied with. These often become insecurities and can lead to a range of disorders. Teens and young adults are the age group most susceptible to eating disorders, with around 95% of cases occurring in 12-25 year olds. Society’s unrealistic expectations of beauty, combined with the “bigger is better” mindset often lead to many of these, such as anorexia nervosa (obsession over weight and refusing to eat), bulimia nervosa (obsession over body image, often leading to overeating and throwing up), and others like body dysmorphia and binge eating. Even so, there is still hope for a brighter (and healthier) future. By teaching the realistic way on how to eat healthy, many of these things can be prevented, and we can be more confident in our body image and live a happier, better life. How can you change your diet to achieve a healthy lifestyle? Many people don’t truly know the importance of a balanced diet when trying to live a healthy lifestyle. It’s not just something you can achieve with a bit of exercise or a diet that you inevitably give up on, but what the name suggests- changing how you live your life. “You need to be realistic.” Being realistic is key. One of the most important things to remember when you decide to change your diet is that you need to be realistic. Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes people make is completely cutting unhealthy foods out of your diet. This can cause you to go into withdrawal, ending up eating more junk than you would before you started dieting. Instead, slowly reduce the amount of unhealthy foods you have. For example, if you had six cookies one day, cut it down to five the next, and continue doing this until you don’t need to eat any cookies at all. A cheat day is okay. Having a healthy diet doesn’t mean you have to completely cut unhealthy foods out of your life. In moderation, a cheat meal is normal and can make the whole health thing more enjoyable (as long as you don’t fall back into old habits). Stick to the guidelines. So what do you need to eat in order to stay healthy anyway? According to the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating, you must eat from five food groups a day to have a balanced diet. These are grains like rice and oats, vegetables like broccoli and capsicum, Lean meats/ poultry like chicken breast and fish, Dairy like milk and yoghurt, and finally fruit like papaya and mango. With all that being said, nothing will change if you don’t put the effort in. Although things like changing what you eat may take lots of time and restraint, in the long run switching it up can really make a difference. Sometimes you just need to step back and see what’s really better for you. Just remember: bigger isn’t always better. Sarah
Sarah writes about how to study more effectively.
Why should you study?
When it comes to studying, we all wait until the very last day! We put a book full of words, in front of our faces and look at it as if it was written in another language. Then we decide to do something else that is “more important”, something that isn’t “boring”. The university of New South Wales says that 93% of students study for a test or exam, 87% of students study the day or night before the test. Some might say “What is the point of studying when i have already learnt about it in class?”. The point of studying to remind yourself of thing that you have learned. You need to study because the truth is that we lose 90% of everything we have learnt, even if we just learned it. It's because our brain in a constant process of learning something and forgetting about it. When we learn something new our brains are trying to figure out if the information will be useful to us in the future, our brains also have limited space. What is cram studying? Cram studying means to study with determination. It is the practice of studying hard and absorbing large amounts of information in an short amount of time. Is cram studying effective? No, cram studying is one of the least effective ways to study. Research has shown that not many students remember what they studied after studying. It’s because they have trained their mind to remember a lot of things at once, without having a deeper understanding. Cramming study into a short time also stresses your brain a lot. Negatives of not studying: 4 ways to prepare for studying. 1. Make a study timetable. Tips for creating a study table: 3. Keep healthy. Remember to always eat, sleep and move around. Don’t sit still for too long. 4. Minimise distractions and overcome procrastination. To study effectively you need to avoid distractions as much as possible ( after all, Instagram and Facebook won’t help your studies ). If you do find yourself turning to your phone on, stop and take a proper break instead. 5 ways to study for a big exam. 1. Asking your teacher about the topic of the exam is a good way to help your studies. 2. When you start studying for your exam, have a positive attitude and positive mind. 3. When studying create a memory game e.g. A song. Use any song that is catchy or a song you simply just like, change the lyric to some of your study notes. Record you singing or says the song, then play it while your asleep. 4. Test yourself frequently using palm cards or flashcards. 5. The most important thing to do when you are studying is to take breaks and reward yourself. Don’t forget to sleep, sleep is important. Taking breaks is good for your mental health. Doing to much study with no breaks will cause stress, panic and even mental breakdowns. The best way to take a break is to go for a walk anywhere. You can reward yourself by watching an episode or just having a piece of chocolate. It is important to study at your own pace, but not the night before hand. Cram study is bad because your brain only remember 10%. Creating a study table is a great way to plan out the times you will study and the times you won’t. Remembering to eat and sleep is important, as it boost your concentration levels. Taking breaks will help you stress less. Testing yourself frequently with mind games, will help you remember a bit more. |