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Studying for finals.

4/28/2019

It's finals season! How's studying going? I'm at the coffee shop, & I love finals season because the coffee shop's always filled with hard-working & diligent students more than usual.

I'm back with another blog post that I'll inevitably drag out like a majority of my blog posts because I love to ramble on about things. Today, it's going to be on how to study effectively for finals. Anything that revolves around school & studying seems to be a very popular topic that a lot of my friends & people in general ask me about.

Flash-cards: Flash-cards aren't just for vocabulary terms. You can make flash-cards for certain topics, & then, on the back, you can write down things that are associated with said topic that you need to remember. Nursing, PA, & med students have to retain a shit-load of vocabulary alone AND additional information. Depending on the subject, you might have to use a lot of flash-cards. I've even used two full packs of 3 x 5 note-cards for just one exam alone in the past. For exams that are heavy in vocabulary & content, I like to divide my note-cards in portions & set a date where I have to study & memorize each portion by. Then, on the last week & right before the exam, I just spend all week running through alllll of the note-cards. If you're too lazy to actually write your note-cards, then you can use the "Study Blue" app, type all of your stuff there, & create digital flash-cards because it might be faster for you & much more convenient because we're always on our iPhones.
What kind of learner are you? Are you a visual, hearing, music, kinesthetic, etc. type of learner? Do you know? If not, then there are several little questionnaires & surveys out there that you can take online to find out. Doing so will probably help you get a better understanding on how you learn best, & it'll help you make changes that'll better suit you & your preferred learning / study type.
Organization & time management: This is what being an exceptional student really comes down to, next to prioritization & knowing how to balance your school, work, & social life. Always stay organized, & make time for your school work before making time for less important things, so you can succeed. Make plans to be productive, stick to it, & study diligently. I like to plan my days out in advance.
Set up a routine: If you know that you have stuff going on every day, set up a certain time or times of the day to squeeze in some studying, even if it's in increments. If you don't have time to study for a few hours straight, then set up a certain time before work, or if you have a gap between classes, set up a study time for somewhere in between, etc. I even have sticky notes on my bathroom mirror, so I can study while I'm doing my skin care routine, while I'm brushing my teeth, etc.
Study right: Review your weaker areas more. Don't constantly go over the stuff that you already know. Spend more time on the stuff that you don't know.
Study with a group of friends or your class-mates: My friends & I go to the coffee shop to study together all of the time, even if we're not majoring in the same things. Similarly, my class-mates & I will camp out in our campus' library with our text-books, get pizza delivered at midnight, & we'll stay up & study all night, which is better because we're in the same classes & learning about the same things, so if anyone has questions, the others will know exactly what they're talking about.
Don't cram: If you're a nursing, PA, or med student, then you already know that you can't cram medicine. You just can't! There's way too much information, & you'll never succeed doing this.
Know know when to stay up, & know when to rest: On most days, I'll stay up & study. Giving up your sleep is a badge of honor to show that you're working hard; however, on the night before an exam, I always get full rest, or at least more rest than most / other nights. One of the nurses that I follow on IG said that if you've truly been studying, then don't stay up the night before an exam. Trust yourself that you already know the information because if you don't by then, then you really just don't. Get some rest because you need to be focused when you take your exam the next day.
Don't dwell: Sometimes, results don't always reflect the hard work that we put in, but recognize your effort, & acknowledge the improvements that you need to make. It's already done, & there's nothing that you can do about it, so move on. If you keep thinking about it, then it'll just distract you & derail you from achieving your goals even more. It's okay to make mistakes, just as long as you learn from them. One bad grade won't ruin your life. Get over yourself.

Good luck on your finals! Remember that school's hard, but life without a degree & an education, especially today, is so much harder. Be grateful for the opportunity to learn because not everyone is lucky.

xoxo,
Camille

Get un-ready with me.

4/22/2019

Here's my unwinding routine & how I decompress after a long day in no particular order:

Foot spa / soak my feet in hot water: On incredibly long days when I've been on my feet all day, whether it's from being at work all day or from shopping all day, I love soaking my feet in hot water. I got this amazing at-home foot spa during a White Elephant game one Christmas season, & I use it all of the time. It's so good. My mom & Danica have even used it, too, lol.
To bed: Most of the time, I just go to bed naked or half-naked, even when it's really cold, because I love that feeling of my skin against the duvet covers. Other times, I'll wear Re/Done x Hanes or tiny tops from Brandy Melville. I don't care how much money I make. I'll always love Hanes & Brandy Melville! <3
My skin care & body routine: After I brush my teeth, I perform my entire skin care routine while I have a teeth whitening strip on. I also moisturize the rest of my body.
Read: In bed or in the bath.
Look at my agenda for the following day: Doing this gives me a heads-up regarding what I'm doing the next day, & it lets me know when I should wake up by.
Take a bath: I love a hot bath after a long day to the point where it's like a sweat lodge. I draw a bath that's composed of half epsom salt & half oil, which is especially helpful after an intense work-out because it alleviates some soreness, I burn a candle or some incense, & I bring some g-f snacks in there with me.
Foam roll
Put something on to watch
Drink a whole bottle of either chlorophyll water from Pressed Juicery, alkaline water by Essentia, or spring water by Evian: I wake up in the morning feeling clean inside & out.
Cassey Ho's "Stretches that you can do after a long & stressful day" Youtube video

I end the night thankful for an incredibly busy & productive day, & I'm ready to start fresh again the next day.

xoxo,
Camille

camille tango

Studying for finals.

Sweat / train with Camille (Shoulders exercise #4).

Sweat / train with Camille (Shoulders exercise #3).

Sweat / train with Camille (Triceps exercise #2).

Get un-ready with me.

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