Dealing With Academic Burnouts

Burnout essentially is a loss of focus, motivation and drive to do anything. Many times my mind is switched off and I end up procrastinating. All of these combined makes it di?cult to function as a student, where focus and motivation are essential for progress and productivity.

 What am I doing to justify the quality of education I am getting? Nothing very much except feeling terrible, which then  makes me feel more terrible.

Academic burnout is real, I see my friends juggling between keeping themselves at par with the studies and keeping themselves updated with the new trends on social media and handling the so-called ‘peer pressure’ of being the coolest among all the friends.

Burnout is an overwhelming stress response. Cortisol is ?ooding through your veins. This hormone has a profound effect on the body and mind. It has a role in sleep/wakefulness, metabolism, immunity, memory, and more.

Life seems to be complicated sometimes. Isn’t it ?

But the question is: How do I deal with burn outs? How do I cope up with the constant pressure of being academically excellent? Well… Sometimes it just takes absolutely NOTHING to cope with it….That’s true… sometimes all I do is lay on my bed and sleep. I try  to take an afternoon nap daily for 20–30 minutes. These lazy days make you feel like the most energetic person. Many times, I take breaks and ?ll them with my favorite activities.

If I feel tired, I go out on the weekends to spend time with my friends and get away from the   academic stress. It helps me catch my breath and regroup.

Also, I make sure I have a good diet. I feel more lethargic if I’m eating junk food all the time. I know being a teenager and keeping yourself away from junk food is so di?cult, but then having a bowl of salad once in a while is a good way to ?ush out the toxins from your   body.

If you ?nd yourself losing motivation, instead of forcing yourself to do something you're not interested in, take a break. Taking even a short break allows your brain to recuperate and for you to regain the energy to focus again. Working for hours ?nishing your school work at the end without a break results in lower productivity. I would suggest working in 50 minute increments followed by a 10 minute break of walking around or browsing the internet.

Steve Jobs famously claimed that he got the most done by procrastinating. Interestingly, he  claimed that letting his mind wander from the task at hand allowed him to be creative. You can try this too to regain motivation and creativity. All you have to do is take a break and look around the world for what fascinates you. For instance, after school every day, I read the newspaper and look for an interesting article in technology and business. Then I do

 some research to satiate my curiosity. This hour long habit gives me motivation and the  creativity I need to succeed as an entrepreneur.