Strategic Goal Setting

Hi everyone!

What a week! I hope you all are feeling happy and confident that you had the best week possible in your chase for college and future opportunities! With new semesters starting and the looming thought of new year's resolutions, I thought it would be the perfect time to talk about strategic goal setting!

 

Now this isn't your typical, "I want to get an A" goal setting. This is goal setting with focus and steps to help you achieve your goals and gain that feeling of accomplishment! Let's get started ...

1. Define your goal - What is it that you want to accomplish this week, semester, or year? Is it getting an A, is it gaining more followers on Youtube, or is it loosing weight? Whether it is academic-related or more personal, you need to accurately define this goal. Be specific in your goal. You need to quantify it so that you have something to aspire to.
2. Quantify your goal - Now that you know what you want to accomplish, it is necessary to put some numbers or some adjectives to it. So you want to get an A, great, but where do you want to get that A? In Bio? In Class Participation? Gym Class? ... etc. You want to get healthy, does that mean eating more salads or working out three times a week?  I don't know about you, but I am more likely to work out everyday if my goal is to lose thirty pounds, than if my goal is to "get healthier." Think about it and structure your goal so that taking steps to do it, will be easier. That brings us to ...
3. Make your procedure - How ya gonna do it folks? How are you going to map out your days and your weeks so that you have no choice but to succeed in accomplishing your goal? Your goal is to raise my GPA (1.), by increasing all of my classroom grades by five points (2.), and I am going to do this by a). using my commute to school to read my notes, b). stay after school twice a week to work in the library and meet with a teacher, c). locate one classmate who I can study with the week leading up to a test. These three procedures are all small, but very doable aspects of helping this student reach their goal.
   
   Your goal will seem more manageable when you break it down into actionable items that can be worked into your schedule easily.
   
   
   
   
   
4. Create Check-Ins - If you've ever seen The Biggest Loser on NBC or any of those weight-loss shows, you know that they do a check-in at the end of each episode to see what was lost. Make a check-in a regular part of your goal. For the student above, it could be checking on their grades in each class on Fridays, or if your goal is to increase your number of youtube followers, have a check in at the same time every two weeks. Once you know the numbers, think about what happened that week to help you reach your goal or give you a little setback. Use this as fuel to continue working towards your goal. If you fell off the wagon, then create a new procedure to counteract that until the next check-in. We are all human and we make mistakes, but what's important is to keep working hard to accomplish those goals that you have set!

Setting goals is a part of growing and improving to help us reach a better spot in life. Set yourself up for success by following those four steps so that once you are done with the semester, the year, or even this week. You know that you worked as hard as possible and did everything in your power to accomplish them!

What are the goals that you have set for yourself and how are you accomplishing them? Feel free to comment below or tag me on twitter at @Chasing_College.

enjoy the chase,

skylar

Spending Free Time as a Commuter

Hi everyone! Today we are continuing on with Chasing College's Commuter Week Series and I am discussing the places on campus where you can spend your free time. This could be between classes or before or after meetings.

If I could give you one piece of advice as a commuter, it is this: Do not go home between your classes! Obviously if you have medical needs as to why you need to go home, that is fine, but just because you have a two hour break between classes, does not mean you should be driving all the way back home, just to turn around and drive back to school. Not only will it save you money on gas, but it will also save you time! You can use those precious fifteen or thirty minutes that you would have been travelling to work on homework, catch up on e-mails, or attend a club meeting.

Therefore, if you are looking for a perfect place to spend your time between classes, you can check out my post on Finding your Study Spot or you can read on to find some commuter perfect spots for reading your e-mails and studying before class!

The Library

This is a rather obvious one, but the library is a great place to spend those couple of hours in between classes, work, and meetings. There are usually a lot of open areas for studying and working, so you can pick a computer table, a study cubby, a group room, or even just a lounge area. There also might even be a cafe there, so you can buy a lunch or just eat your own home-made lunch and snack!

Commuter Corner

A great thing about universities with a high commuter population is that they usually have an area designated for commuter students. Where I work, there is a specific set of offices set aside with couches, a dinner table, a kitchen sink, microwave, and refrigerator. Hanging out in these areas is a great way to meet fellow commuters and get to know more people. A lot of universities actually have them, so be sure to ask about those on your college tour.

An Empty Classroom

While this may seem kind of nerdy or 'square,' working in an empty classroom can be some of the most productive times you'll have. After a few weeks, especially on a smaller campus, you will learn which classrooms are open at which times, so just duck into one and start working on your homework. I wouldn't spread your stuff out too much, in case a class comes in late or if there is a meeting scheduled for that room, but spending time in there is much better than wasting 2 hours going home between your classes. 

Outside

With Spring coming and the warmer, beautiful weather on the horizon, another great place to spend your down time in between classes is on a bench outside! Soak up that Vitamin D while reading about Plato and Aristotle.You can sit and chat with your friends as they walk by or find a secluded area of campus that no one really knows about to enjoy the birds chirping and that Statistics homework you need to complete!

The Gym

Why not use your free time to get in some exercise and catch up on your favorite tv shows or vloggers. Or, if there is a dance or fitness class that you've been wanting to try, take advantage of that too! Just pack a change of clothes in your bag so that when you're done you can freshen up. Just remember, if you go to the gym and catch up on your fitness and television, you can use the time at home after your classes to study and work on projects!

Also, I know for me, if I were to go home in the middle of the day, it would take all of my strength to get back to campus in time for class. Don't temp yourself with your comfy couch and your snuggly dog, just stay at college and you can work on all of that extra stuff that needs to be completed for your classes!  Have a great day everyone!!

enjoy the chase,

skylar

Finding your Study Spot

Hi everyone! With the semester gearing up and getting more and more jam-packed, I wanted to talk to you all about finding your study spot on campus, in your room, or at home. As simple as this is, finding a place to read a book, it is almost a make-it-or-break-it component to your scholastic life. Here are my tricks of the trade when it comes to finding your sweet spot!

Figure out your ideal time of day! Every student has an ideal time when they are their most productive, so channel that time to make your study spot ideal. Some students, they focus best in the early mornings, some in the afternoon, and some at 2am. Everyone is different, so make sure you are doing what is best for you!

Pick your distraction level! You may be one of those people who love being around people and study best when you're surrounded by others, or you may be someone who can have zero distractions while studying, reading, and writing. Because of that, you need to find a place that fits that need. In a library, usually the higher you go (number of floors), the quieter it will be. If you are working on the main floor of the library or student center, you will get a lot of traffic for people trying to print things, order food at the cafe, or chat with others. Also,  different areas will have different distraction levels at different times of day.

Examine your comfort level! Again, depending on your personality and what you need, you have to find your level of comfort when it comes to writing papers and studying for exams. This could be wearing sweatpants and not having showered in a day or it could be that you need to be freshly showered with jeans and a nice top on. It could also be the type of chair or couch you could be sitting on while studying. Find out what works best for you by trying a bunch of different surroundings.

Make sure you bring everything you need! This goes without saying, but make sure you have all you need when studying. A study spot won't be a productive place for you if you can't get work done because you forgot something. Whether it is your computer charger, a highlighter, a notebook, your flashdrive, and your textbooks, make sure you have what you need so you don't waste a ton of time going back and forth from your room to your study spot. Don't forget to bring a snack and some water or juice to keep your energy up!

If it is not working, switch it up! Your study spot does not need to be the same for each of your classes. When I was in undergrad, I had one spot in the library where I wrote papers, there was my Res Life Office where I worked on extra-curricular projects, and then on my bed I read for all of my classes. Each of these study/work spots worked perfectly for what I needed to do in them. When something wasn't working or I needed inspiration, I would try a different classroom or a different computer in the library.

Overall, surviving academic life in high school and in college is essential and finding a great study spot for yourself can really help you achieve your goals. Once you have it figured out, definitely try to keep it up and don't sway, unless it is not helping you be productive. Productivity is the name of the game when it comes to studying and working on homework! For myself, I love to read for class at a specific spot in our library in the mornings or on my bed when I am home on the weekends. Everyone is different, so make sure you are doing what is best for you and if you have a great spot for studying now, feel free to comment below! I'd love to hear!!

enjoy the chase,

skylar