It’s the start of the 2025-2026 school year, and with each year that passes, we are left with a chance to reflect and improve. As a senior, I reflected on my previous high school years and realized that I managed to do a lot of my work in really stressful ways that ended up creating poor habits. While my go-to strategy for school is to procrastinate, I decided to make it my goal to change my lifestyle and habits to give myself the grace to work towards success. But it’s often easier said than done, the work load as the year progresses becomes bigger and I end up procrastinating rather than being productive. Whether this is your current situation or if you find it easy to stay on track, I want to share some tips from my experience to continue to improve and redirect setbacks into success.

Limit distractions, not just for school, but for yourself

Personally this is my struggle area. I love to doom scroll, watch shows, and FaceTime friends as I work. While I’m doing any of these activities I think to myself, “In 30 minutes I’ll shut off my phone and finish my work…,” then those 30 minutes turn into an hour, then two hours, and the next thing I know, three hours have gone by. It’s a vicious cycle. This habit is so hard to break especially when you’re under a lot of stress. I found that when I’m under pressure, it puts me in a vulnerable spot to run away from my problems. I realized the longer you put something off, the less likely you will be proud of it. The 30 minutes I was spending doing other things took my focus away from work. This ended up cutting my leisure time and making my work more rushed. Be sure to have your work space clean, distraction-free, and organized. It’s also important to note that I’m not advocating against breaks during work time, but rather to emphasize how different they are from distractions.

Create a routine

While school or other activities do this for us, I think that before and after school time is just as important to track and plan. You don’t have to go into the by the hour specifics (unless you wish to) but a simple list of tasks can help your brain put your day into perspective. You also have the freedom of writing or using whatever apps you want to remind yourself. Both have their pros, personally, I use both. I like writing each of my schedules or reminders on paper and later putting them on my Google Calendar and setting timed reminders to be on time for clubs or meetings I might have. Not only does scheduling help, but also filling up any free time with activities like working out, going on walks, and meditating allow your free time to be used in beneficial ways and not behind a screen.

Stay active

Being active doesn’t always mean lifting heavy weights and eating on a strict diet. It can be a group activity with friends or family like going on a hike or playing a sport together. Even a 30 minute walk can be beneficial to your routine. The body thrives on movement but it’s important to not neglect sleep and rest either. If you like to be active be sure to give yourself those rest days you deserve. Physical activity can improve your mental health and allow you to regulate other systems in your body. It’s just as important to take care of your mental health alongside your physical health. If you feel that your mental health isn’t where you wish it was and that it’s affecting other aspects of your life, go to a trusted adult and ask for help. No matter the situation there is always someone ready to listen and help, including our school staff.