If you’re reading this, congratulations – you’ve gotten past the most depressing day of the year! Called Blue Monday, it falls on the third Monday of every New Year when the combined euphoria of seasonal celebrations evaporates and the new year devolves into a routine of regular work and the guilt of all the broken new year’s resolutions – to say nothing about picking up the bill from the festivities!
Fortunately, for anyone still trapped on Monday the 20th of January in some sort of horrendous Groundhog Day scenario, scientists have largely debunked the idea that there’s anything out of the ordinary about the start of this particular week. The research for its existence was originally paid for by a travel company, no doubt looking to lift sales of holidays during the winter. This represents a conflict of interest that should leave no-one scratching their heads in doubt that this is probably just another case of marketing masquerading as media.
And speaking of marketing masquerading as media, here’s some tips to stay motivated in your studying incase you do, infact, find Blue Monday is real for you.
Start Early
We talk a lot about how, at ADL, you get to study at your own pace, at a time that suits you. That’s definitely true. But given the choice between getting started now and later, we recommend starting your assignments and courses of study sooner rather than leaving them to languish. You may find you have underestimated the time you need to get to grips with a topic and need more time – conversely if you overestimate and finish early you can hand in your assignment sooner and move on to other things. It’s far better than the alternative of needing more time than you have available because you left things too late.
Have a Dream!
Okay, so the bonding method and chemical interactions of the bio-chemy-thingy-wingy-wotsits is possibly not the most exciting part of your course. Actually let’s just be honest and say this bit? It’s really, really boring. Ofcourse it’s an essential part of the course and understanding it is key to being able to demonstrate your progress to your tutor. So don’t dwell on just how dull this little part of your studies are – focus instead on where you want it to take you. See past the equations, formulae and walls of text and peer into the dream of where you want to be.
…and a Goal
And if the above fails? Resort to bribery. Specifically, bribing yourself. Whether it’s cake, a little drink, sunlight or whatever, make sure to offer yourself a reward for tackling the tough bits on your course. However do keep the rewards modest – you want to save something really big for the grand finale of finishing your course!
Ask for Help
Don’t let a little misunderstanding get in the way between yourself and success. If there is something that is giving you difficulty, ask. Make use of your tutor and other students and, where appropriate, the staff at ADL. While we can’t promise to be experts individually on the subject, like your tutor can, if you’re having other difficulties that might, for example, require help with accessing your online course, let us know because we’re here to help.
Having a Blue Monday? Broke all your New Years resolutions and don’t know where to turn? Confess all and tell us about it at [email protected] !
