You’re almost there. Whether this is your first year of school or your last year of school, the regular school semester is almost over. Which means that now is the perfect time to celebrate your achievements right? Not so fast! Unless you’re already done, now is not the time to let your foot off the gas. You’ve got to push to the end. Here are my 3 pieces of advice to make it to the end of term successfully.

Plan a celebration for when you’re done

The temptation is to start celebrating early, you’re almost done and it’s easy to slip into that feeling that you are done. A way to avoid this is to plan a celebration for yourself for when you’re actually done. By planning a celebration beforehand the temptation to celebrate early is avoided. Not only that, you have something to look forward to for finishing. It is a way to provide some incentive for yourself. What that celebration looks like is totally up to you. Go see a movie, go for a dinner, hang out with friends, buy yourself something you’ve wanted for a while. Whatever it is, it’s worth doing something for yourself to celebrate the end of your term. You’ve earned it, but you’ve earned it once you’re done.

Work Hard

At this point in the term finishing just comes down to mental fortitude. Putting the axe to the grindstone is really the only way to get through these last couple days or weeks. The way to do this is to put yourself in situations where this kind of grinding is possible. Remove distractions, eat well, sleep well, all the tips, tricks and skills you’ve developed throughout your time is school will come into play and now is the time to make use of them.

Work Well

Time is really running out to get your work done this term. To this end the time is now to work efficiently as well. So take good breaks, learn in small chunks, focus in and really use your time efficiently. If you know that there is limited time, focus on the things you are more likely to be able to learn successfully. If there is a concept you don’t know at all, don’t waste your time on it if you will never know it, you can make up for it in other concepts if you can ace them. This is why studying in a concept-based manner is so effective.

Eyes on the prize

You’re almost there. The key to getting through these final days of a term are keeping your eyes on the final prize to keep motivated while at the same time staying grounded. So make sure you plan a treat for yourself for finishing, work really hard and try to work as efficiently as possible. If you are feeling overwhelmed there are resources on campus that can help, google your school name and resources or ask a friend. You can do this!