You’re studying for a reason. You have a dream, a vision of who you would like to be in the future, and you have a goal. It’s not always easy to stay focused on your goals, especially if there are a lot of requirements and it takes years to achieve it. There will be a lot of ups and downs; there will be days where you feel like taking the easy way out and go for something a little easier. But you know what? You might regret that decision, and you might just end up putting your future on hold. Maybe you need that, but if you want to keep going, here are some tips to keep yourself focused!
- Write it down. Writing down your goals helps a lot. Write them everywhere! Personally, I have mine written on my calendar, diary, and sticky notes on my study table and even on my phone! It’s great to have a reminder; it will remind you of what you want to do and encourage you to keep going!
- Change the things that hold you back. It’s not always easy to admit the things that we do wrong, but it’s helpful to accept them if you want to change. Write down the things about you that you would like to change, write down the reasons why they are holding you back, what would happen if you don’t stop and what could happen if you do!
- Take it one step at a time. It’s important not to overwhelm yourself. You can’t change overnight, and you won’t achieve your goals without hard work. Set small goals, even just writing a to-do list for the next day and make sure that they are challenging, yet doable. It’s even helpful to commit yourself to just one thing for now until it becomes a part of your daily ritual and then move on to another one.
- Making a mistake is okay. Even if you plan everything out, think about all the steps you take to perfect it, you will make a mistake. And it’s okay. Mistakes are lessons. Find out where you went wrong and it’s always great to have a do-over with a better outcome, as long as you don’t forget to admit where you went wrong. These will keep you in control of your decisions in the future.
- Remember the bigger picture. In times of giving up, stop, look at the piece of paper where you wrote down your goals.
- Other resources such as books, audio books, meditation, sports or anything that keeps you motivated would also be helpful!
- Each decision that you make should be in service of who you want to be.
