Syllabus week is over and the first wave of exams and papers are coming in full steam ahead.  Chugga chugga choo choo, “All aboard the struggle train. I’m Katie and I’ll be your conductor this semester!” With these beautiful sunny days lately, it’s tough to buckle down and study throughout the day. I’d much rather be hanging out with friends, biking to Dairy Queen for a cone, watching Burn Notice on Netflix, or sleeping! Pretty soon, I look at my phone and it’s 10:00 at night. Yikes, I think to myself, there are roughly 12 hours of daylight in any given day and I just wasted all of them…without even touching any of my homework. So once again, here comes another late night and a bright and early morning. I’m dragging all day and can barely keep my eyes open in class. So here are 10 must-do’s to stop procrastinating and finally get off the struggle train.

1. Set Clear Goals: What do you want to get out of this semester? Write them down and hang them up by your bed. It will be a constant reminder of why you’re working so hard in college.
2. Make a to-do list: I don’t know what it is about making lists, but I get all giddy when I get to cross things off it. It keeps you focused on what you need to do during the day and also allows you to see how much you’ve accomplished.
3. Find your go-to: It’s the first full week of classes. Find your favorite go-to spot on campus to study, aside from your dorm room. You’ll need somewhere to go so you aren’t tempted to sleep or work on other side projects. My go-to? The Science Center first floor conference rooms.
4. Break up the work: Instead of cramming everything into one night, get a head start and chunk it up into smaller pieces. You’ll feel like you’re getting more done than you actually are and it will keep you more motivated!
5. Find a Buddy: Find someone from class who is willing to study with you. They will help keep you accountable for studying when you say you will…but choose your buddy wisely!
6. “Do Not Disturb”: It’s a grade saver. It may feel like you’ve been working on homework forever, but in reality you haven’t gotten much accomplished. Doing homework with no distractions will decrease your time spent working on things and will increase the quality of your work.
7. Stop making excuses: Get a grip. The 7 excuses you just spewed off to your roommate about why you couldn’t get your work done is bologna. I know, because I do the same thing. Start your work earlier and you won’t need to make any excuses.
8. Reward Yourself: Once you’ve finished everything on your to-do list, reward yourself! Whether it’s an episode of Grey’s on Netflix or eating a tub of raspberry fudge cordial ice cream, it’s up to you; you deserve it!
9. Keep on Top of Things: Weekends are for having fun, right? Wrong. Get ahead on the weekends, look at the upcoming week’s assignments and start on them! You’ll appreciate it later. 
10. Just Do It: Sometimes you have to just suck it up. Of course it’s not fun, but if you want to reach your goals, it’s necessary.

Katie Byers '18 is a biology-chemistry major & business minor. A member of the women's basketball team, she plans to study abroad in New Zealand in February 2017, and her dream job is to work at an orthopedic hospital.