During winter break, where the normal responsibilities of living on your own while managing schoolwork aren't as pressing, it is SO nice to finally relax. In fact, I even began to stress about the fact I wasn't stressed (school has done a number on us all, what can I say). Now that school has started back up, while I'm going to classes and settling back into my routine, it doesn't feel real yet.

Many of my peers agree that it's hard to readjust and that it is hard to get back into the driven mindset that was there at the beginning of the first semester. My roommate and I even procrastinate the work we really should be doing by accomplishing mindless tasks for other classes that aren't even close to being due.

I realized that I was succumbing to the second-semester slump that has come around since the beginning of high school and began to change parts of my daily routine and habits to make sure that down the road I don't regret not putting in as much effort as I should have at the beginning of my classes.

One thing that tremendously increased my productivity is bringing materials for my other classes with me so that when my classes are done, or if I have a break in between two, I can go to the library or a coffee shop and get work done. I do this so that I don't have to go back to my room because chances are I will just fall asleep or end up starting some Netflix series I'll never finish.

Another thing that has helped me not fall behind in school work is that I use big sticky notes and write down important due dates for every class, and every class has its own sticky note. I place these above my desk so that while I'm doing work I can make sure I'm not missing anything and that my planner stays up to date.

This next idea doesn't necessarily make me more productive, but it helps me focus on the good in my life rather than the million stressors I feel like I have no control over. In my bullet journal (this could be done anywhere, though), I have a page where every day next to the date I write the highlight of my day. No matter how bad my day has been, I write the one thing that made me happy even if it is as simple as getting a really good cup of coffee or reading a chapter in a book. It's also nice to go back and read at times when it feels like things are piling up, as they always tend to do.

I honestly don't know how I got up early for the first 18 years of my life because after having a bunch of early classes last semester I thought I would avoid getting up early if at all possible. Now that my classes are later, I could very easily use the time in the morning to sleep in, which I do sometimes, but now that I don't have to get up early, sometimes I do.

I feel refreshed when I get up on my own terms and even if I don't necessarily accomplish anything school-related, I use the time to watch Netflix, or read, or whatever else I would use as an excuse not to do work so that I could be productive later.

One of the easiest ways to fall into a slump is if you have friends that also begin to get lazier and less motivated. With that being said, one of the simplest ways to AVOID losing motivation is to encourage your friends to be productive with you: go to the library together, go to the gym as a group, do whatever you think will help you stay on track, but as a group.

While readjusting is definitely a challenge for everyone, it should not negatively influence school performance or your personal life more than necessary.