So I made the bus driver cry

Hi everyone!

Hope you’re all well.

Now that the Easter holidays are under way, I hope you are able to get some rest, but at the same time have more time to work on your assignments, exams, presentations…

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a blog about avoiding procrastination as I know a lot of people have the tendency to do avoid work (including me), so if you haven’t already read that, please check it out as it would be especially beneficial now during your Easter break.

One thing I want to add – because of university your body is probably already fixed to a routine of waking up early to lectures or staying up late to finish work (:p) so take advantage of this and work during those hours, don’t get lazy!

There’s only about a month left till the academic year ends, so we can do it! 🙂

 

Finally I wanted to share something that happened to me yesterday:

I woke up ‘early’ to get to university for 9, to help out in marketing. The journey was going great, I was on the bus, 2 minutes away from the university and it was still 8.40…and then all of a sudden the driver decided to go the other direction. I was like hey!! Now common sense would tell you to get off the bus, but I just assumed he’s going to turn back and go through a different road or something, but nope…we took a completely different direction!

It turns out Cromwell Lane was blocked off, and that was the last stop!

I was alone on the bus and ‘finally’ decided to approach the driver, when I told him where I wanted to go; he parks the bus and starts crying! I was so shocked and confused; I’m the one who should be crying, not this 40 year old man behind a wheel! So anyway at that point he decided to get off the bus, so I was there alone on the bus for 5 minutes…I did think about driving myself to uni, but after much thought I decided against it. He finally walks back in with red eyes and wet tissues.  He went back in his seat, and I was like ‘hooray! We’re leaving’ but nope wrong again! He decided to turn the lights off and cry some more.

I was texting my friend everything in case anything happened to us!

You’re probably thinking ‘why didn’t you just get off’ and the answer is I don’t know! I was confused and a bit worried! And plus we were in such a remote place, full of fields and chickens and camels (ok maybe not that) but still, I had no idea where I was.

(And yes I got to university late, but crying it was the bus drivers fault did not make me look innocent at all, I skipped the part about making him cry)

Cromwell lane is blocked for the next 2 weeks, so please don’t make the same mistake I did! Just make sure you get off at the right stop.

Find more info by clicking here.

Mr Bus driver, if you happen to come across my blog, I sincerely want to apologise and I want to say it’s ok!! I didn’t get in trouble or anything, I’m always late to places, honest! I hope you’re ok now! And don’t worry about the crying thing, I felt like crying before when I reached over to eat my mars bar and realised I already ate it!

Anyway, in other news, I decided to grow a plant. I’ve given up on animals. Plants are so much easier to look after.

Day 5: still no plant

Thank you for reading! Now get back to work! :p

Tahne

Avoiding Procrastination!

Because I exceeded the word limit in my previous blog, I didn’t have space to talk about the academic side of things, so that’s what I’m going to be doing in this blog.

First of all, as you probably all realise, there’s less than two months left before this academic year ends! It is this time of year where a lot of coursework/presentations need to be handed in and exams are fast approaching! Perhaps the most stressful part of the year!

OK hopefully not this bad!

As I mentioned in a previous blog link  I have 7 assignments to give in this semester, already getting one out the way, I now have 6 left. 3 in April and 3 in May. The first being due next week, in ‘Early Modern Literature!’

Having that calendar on my wall with all those deadlines is a terrible sight! However as scary as it is to look at, it is helping me to work…

…saying that, those who know me know that I still procrastinate a lot!

I realise that a lot of people are the same. Though we all have the desire and motivation to succeed and get things done, actually putting all the effort in takes a lot of work!

Therefore I have put together a list of some of the ways that could help us avoid procrastination:

1. Make a list: You know I love to make lists – I’m making one right now! Making a List of things you need to do is great because you can tick it of once you’ve finished a task and feel a great sense of accomplishment! Ready to start the next one! I also strongly recommend that you give yourself a timeframe for when each task needs to be completed – make sure it’s well before the deadline. It also helps to reward yourself once you completed the task (spend about 30 minutes or so doing something you want).

2. Start! : A lot of people, like me, spend a lot of time thinking about how they will complete something in time. In fact they think about this so much, that they could have completed the task in the time they were thinking about it! (Or a large proportion of it anyway!) Therefore just focus on starting, and then once you have started you will find that actually you could get this done and do your best at it. Also don’t wait for a ‘perfect’ time to start! This will never come! Just start NOW.

3. Prioritise but don’t neglect: Work on all your assignment (or whatever it is you need to do) but prioritise those that are due in first without neglecting the others.  If you just think about your next assignment that’s due, you might find that you’re short on time when it comes to starting the rest.

4. Change work place: if you cannot work at home, work in the library or somewhere different. If you cannot work alone, work with others. You don’t have to be working on the same thing, just motivate each other to work.

5. Think about summer holidays: Finally if you really want to enjoy your holidays, you would have to put in all the work and effort now. Just two more months of hard work left (or less) and you could enjoy double that amount of time having fun!! (Especially as you would get your results 3 weeks ,or less, after submission date)

 

Everyone is different, so you have to figure out which way works for you.  However you study, if it works then its good. This is a start of a brand new week, so let’s start it well by getting our work done and preparing ourselves for all our deadlines.  Don’t you want to enjoy your summer holidays?

Less than 2 months to go!

Good luck! And until next time!

Tahne

A Minute to the Deadline! (scroll down to vote)

I had this idea of writing a blog about assignments for quite a while now, as I thought it will be useful to you, but I decided to wait until I have given in my first essay. This way I could be more specific with my points, and able to remember the exact situation. My first essay was only just given in, so I think this is a perfect time for me to write this.

Being an earthling for two decades now, I have encountered three types of people; those who can count and those who can’t.

No I’m joking. There are three types of people- when it comes to writing essays- These are:

1. Those who start early/write a plan/organised etc.
2. Those who ‘say’ they will start ‘today’ or ‘tomorrow’ … but never do- OR ‘start’ by writing the title page and a single line then feel proud of themselves for starting so early. So they decide to have a bit of a break …for about two weeks.
3. And those who insist ‘I always leave it to the last minute, but its OK! I work well under pressure!’

So if you are a number ‘one’ type of person…or closely related, then kudos to you. It’s always great to prepare early to avoid any drastic situation.

…keep reading for an example!

For the other two types of people, I want to tell you a real story that was passed on to me and affected my approach to essays. Sarah Newson, a good friend of mine, has allowed me to share her story with you, which will hopefully also be of benefit to you.

So Sarah had an essay to give in for the 15th of November; she decided to start working on it in about October. So she made a plan and according to her plan she would have completed her essay by the start of November. However everyday she would plan to start… but never did. Days and days passed by, then eventually she was so frustrated that everyone else is almost finished, that she decided to finally begin. She made a start…however it wasn’t enough. To fast forward this story, it was now the 10th of November and she still had a large proportion of her essay to complete.

She kept working at it till eventually on the day itself she still had a little bit left to do. However this ‘ little bit’ wasn’t so little (she was unaware of this at the time). The deadline for handing essays in is 12:00. At 9 she was still working on it, and at 10…and at 11…and 11.30.

She then decided it’s time to stop and print it off, she had half an hour. However when she went to print it the printer was not working! She tried the other printers but they to were not working! It was now 11.40. She asked the librarian and they informed her that the printers have stopped and anything important can be printed in the hub. So she ran to the hub! It was 11.45-her heart pumping and her legs shaking!

Once getting there she was told she had to email it first. With no other choice she ran back to the library and sent her work. Running back to the hub, it was now 11.50…she had to wait in the queue before getting it printed. Its 11.52. Then approaching the printers, the large piles of papers were taking their time to come out. But then she realised that they have come out wrong as the format changed, and had to re-print everything! It’s 11.55. She felt powerless waiting for them to come out.

One…

by…

…one.

11.56…11.57. She thought of an idea, while its printing she can fill in her cover sheet. Once she finished her cover sheet, the papers were printed, and it was 11.58. Quickly she put them in the paper wallet, gave them a quick glance to check they were in the right order and gave it in…at 11.59. A Minute to the Deadline.

Ok I fine I’ll admit it, Sarah Newson is actually me…that was probably obvious. And this happened on Friday. I don’t know if there is someone called Sarah Newson, if you are a Sarah Newson… sorry your name just appeared in my head…somehow…

So what can you learn from this?

Well I hope now you have seen leaving it late could have serious consequences. Every bad thing that could happen…happened! And it could happen to anyone. I could have written a blog, simply listing what you could do to manage your time, but there are so many resources and data about this on-line and in books, and I’m sure you’ve heard them time and time over! But you know-You can read all the books you want, you can search on-line, you can go to work shops and learn about it…but at the end of the day you just have to do it.

Action is everything.

The sooner you learn that the better. Even if you do work well under pressure, starting early and spending just a little bit more time could be worth that extra mark. And don’t underestimate how long something can take you, always leave a bit of gap, anything can happen. Don’t realise this when it’s too late. That was my first essay of the year, and now experiencing that, I am more than determined to begin all my others as soon as possible, and I hope you are too!

Thank you for reading! Don’t forget to ‘like’ and ‘follow’ so you are notified when I post new blogs!

As always let me know if you have any questions, always happy to help!

Tahne

Edit:

So after writing this post and hearing some of your responses, I was really curious, and I’m sure you are too, on how the majority of students approach essays. 

 So I decided to make a poll! Please fill in your vote to which option best fits you.

I also think that this is a great way for you readers to get more involved (rather than just reading).

 I have kept the results private for now (so not to influence your result) and will reveal them next week.

(Let me know if you have any questions)

Thank you.