Every morning for the past few weeks, it seems to be harder and harder to get out of bed, brush my teeth, get dressed, and get to class on time. Breakfast is a maybe. But, nonetheless, I have managed to squeeze through the door and into my seat before my professor starts calling role.

As I look around, however, the case is not always so for my fellow students. And I get it. College can be tough, especially at the end of the semester, and especially at the end of the spring semester.

No one is looking forward to summer vacation like I am. I'm wrapping up my first full year at Longwood, and, I've gotta say, it's been a tough one. All the same, I've been working hard to keep my grades up and finish the semester strong. Finishing strong, of course, can mean different things for different people, and it's important that you can understand what it means for you before going further. For some, it may just be riding it out. For others, it may be doing everything in your power to pull that C up to a B or B up to an A or even just maintaining whatever letter you're at.

Whatever your goals, it is vital that you don't throw in the towel early.

Just keep your eye on the proverbial ball and remember that you have those goals for a reason. Something pushed you to that initial desire; don't let your lack of motivation let you sleep in when you could be pumping up those grades.

The nice thing about college is that there is always time, at some point in the day, for a beautiful, beautiful nap. I mean, there's always going to bed early, but come on. Who's doing that?

Luckily, I've been able to keep my absences to a minimum this semester. If I do decide, for whatever reason, that I'm going to skip a class during presentations week or, say, take an early weekend the week before finals and go up to New York for an adventure to cleanse my pallet and emotionally prepare for the excitement of final exams (*cough cough*), I can do so without worry of it affecting my grade. However, if you are one who may have said in February, "I'm just gonna go in for my second class" or "I'll just skip my 12:30 for an early lunch" one too many times, the above may not be as much an option.

Like I said before, my mornings have been getting harder and harder, so I have to compensate. Setting an alarm with a snooze button for earlier than you actually plan to get up is a great way to ease yourself into waking up. Just make sure you pick a song that you don't mind hearing two or three or four times before actually flopping out from beneath the covers.

When I played football in high school, my coaches always incited us to not stop running until we've crossed the end line, no matter how utterly exhausted you may be; to give it our all until the clock hit zero. Much like football, college can be a game of inches. Nothing is more frustrating than sitting at an 89.78% in a class where the professor doesn't believe in rounding up (come on! help a brother out!). But, as much as we would all like to blame our grade issues on the professor, we have to take at least some responsibility (but it is the professor's fault, obviously). Motivation goes a long way in April when it comes to this. Take some extra time to revise your papers. Set up a little extra time in the library for reading and studying. Take some extra time to visit with those professors, who are clearly working against you, to see in what ways you can improve your grades before it's too late.

Whatever your reasons or goals, April is the time to kick it in the sixth gear. Unfortunately, it's not as simple as pushing in the clutch and moving the shifter over. Sometimes, you've got to completely rip out the transmission and put in a new one that actually has a sixth gear. To play hard, you've got to work hard. Make the beach sand feel ever-sweeter between your toes. Make the sun beam ever-brighter down onto your skin. Make the rum taste ever-more-delicious on your lips.

All it takes is a little motivation.