Semester slumps are the worst. We've all heard about the infamous sophomore slump, which is actually a very real phenomenon from my experience, but slumps are not only reserved for sophomores. In fact, anyone can have a semester slump. I mean, I had one my freshman year, which was ridiculously early. But hey, that happens right? Why does it seem, though, that almost everyone's motivation at this point in the semester magically disappears? I mean one minute the entire class cares about their grades, but the next minute you can't find a single person in the class who actually truly cares about the outcome of the class. In fact, most people don't even show up anymore. They've accepted their fates, and I respect that.
Why is it that we care, but still have no desire to do the work. I'll be the first to admit that I myself am a very apathetic person. One of the few things I truly care about other than my cat are my grades. It seems like at the beginning of the semester everything is so new and promising. I love all of my classes at the beginning of the semester, and I can't wait to jump into reading. In fact, I even enjoy writing papers. But as the semester continues, I just feel less and less inclined to do work. I mean, who wants to do work when the weather is so beautiful in the spring? And who actually wants to do work so close to the holidays in the fall? I mean, that would totally kill my Christmas spirit.
Oh, I have a 300-page book due tomorrow? I'll wing that. Oh, I have a 10-page paper due in 12 hours? Hello Facebook. French test in the morning? Let me try to teach myself German. No matter what I do, I just can't find inspiration. This past week, I literally spent an hour and a half making a playlist titled "I hate myself." The playlist is fantastic, yet I still haven't done that paper that I need to do. Yeah, procrastinating is great, but where has my desire gone to actually keep up in my classes gone? I mean, I get the work done last minute, which counts as keeping up in my book, but it would be nice to actually get some sleep. Every semester around this time, however, I can count on several hours of procrastination, a few hours of sleep and several cups of coffee.
Maybe it's only me, but I literally have a slump every semester. Even when I can see the light of freedom at the end of the tunnel, I can't bring myself to do the work. I start out strong out the beginning of the semester, but get weaker and weaker as it goes. I don't want the professors to think I hate their classes because that's far from the truth. Instead, I want them to realize that it's just a slump, and I'll be back to normal once I have an extended break. If you're anything like me, hang in there. We will be free soon.
