Self-care is so important, especially now that we’re back at school. With summatives constantly popping up, and the weather getting darker and gloomier every day, it can be hard to maintain motivation. That’s why I’ve collected 3 tips and tricks that you can use to stay on top of your work, while still maintaining a healthy balance for personal time.

Designating locations for tasks:

Although you may be tempted to finish your homework in bed or to pile all your work up until you end up staying up late doing it the night before, many studies show that dedicating a certain location to a certain task, such as homework and relaxation, can help to program our brains to associate those locations with the desired concentration, creativity, or rest. If you make the effort to always do your memorisation and note-taking on a specific table or desk, your brain will begin to associate that area with that type of work, making it easier to concentrate. That way, if you designate creative tasks to another area like your bedroom floor, or another surface, your will have to switch locations between tasks, therefore making your brain split up the endless sea of tasks into manageable workloads.

Using your sense of smell:

Your senses all play a role in your mental state and ability to do tasks; however, you’d be surprised at just how much your sense of smell can help you achieve tasks. “A recent study investigates the role of odor in learning and memory. The authors confirm that the strategic use of aromas while learning and during sleep might improve academic performance.” According to Medical News Today, exposing yourself to certain smells can help you with relaxation (lavender, rosemary, jasmine), memorisation (rose, basil) and focus (lemon, coffee). So maybe get yourself a few scented candles and take a whiff next time you need to do a task.

The best study music:

For me personally, I work best with background noise, especially music. However, as much as I wish it wasn’t the case, I just don’t work as efficiently when I listen to music with lyrics. If you’re someone like me who needs a melody playing, but struggles to focus when your favourite song comes on, then I recommend soundtracks. Soundtracks are a great way to remind you of your favourite movies or television shows without distracting you with lyrics or pictures.

Some of my favourite ones are:

Interstellar, Dune, The Queen’s Gambit, Luca, Lala Land (Piano version).

They keep you entertained and are great for completing tasks under a deadline, so maybe next time you need some motivating music turn off the catchy pop tunes and give a catchy soundtrack a listen.

These were a few of my favourite tips and tricks for self-care, and to keep me motivated to stay on task and get work done! These obviously won’t work for everyone—they sometimes don’t work for me—it’s just about finding what works for you and developing a routine that hopefully, you can stick to even when summatives are right around the corner.