With every ball drop of the new year, thousands of people commit to immediately starting to make lifestyle changes. But what about us college kids who have to brave both a new year and a new semester? Let’s be honest: our last experience with classes before break was finals, and if that didn’t convince us that we needed to go on a journey of self-improvement, we weren’t doing finals right. So cheers to last semester being in the past and to the first week of classes coming to an end!

Brunch more.

Much of my excess free time over winter break was spent scrolling through my Instagram feed—an exercise that led me to one important conclusion: I need a little more #brunch in my life. I feel that this endeavour will not only give me an excuse to try out some great places (Winslow’s Home and Half & Half are on the top of the list), but will also be a way for my roommates and me to catch up after a busy week in the form of what I hope will quickly become a weekly tradition. After all, ladies who brunch together stay together. With both exploring and bonding built into this resolution, I’m really hitting two birds with one stone: more eggs for me!

Complain less.

It’s true that venting sometimes makes me feel better, but, most of the time, gripes and complaints just drag down everyone’s mood and aren’t productive at all. It’s probably going to be harder than I anticipate, but this semester I’m trying to stop those complaints before I say them.

Stick to my convictions and stay focused on my goals.

It’s very easy to get distracted and lose sight of what I’d planned to do, and it’s a big fight to get into the ideal routine I’d imagined for myself. What I need to accept is that life isn’t all black and white, and “perfect” and “imperfect” are only two extremes on an entire spectrum of states that color each day in a different shade. There will be ups and downs, but I resolve not to get overwhelmed by the “downs” and to work on making the overall trend go upwards

Study for tests earlier than 24 hours before.

Everyone gets into traps sometimes with forgetting assignments or not having enough time to study in advance. But the whole “I’ll just worry about it later and watch one more episode of ‘Family Guy’” approach isn’t doing so hot. This semester I’m going to listen to my high school guidance counselor’s advice to “manage my time” and “not waste hours on Facebook” and “complete my schoolwork.” College is about trying new things, right? Here’s to setting a new record by starting my studying 25 hours before the test!

With the new semester just around the corner, I hope i was able to provide you with some helpful hints! Good luck and remember, you're one step closer to your goal!