Prompt 1 Good habits can improve our physical, emotional, and/or financial health. This semester, you’ve all sought to adopt new habits that will keep you strong in college. What habit would you tell an incoming freshman to adopt that you have also cultivated this semester?

When I began my first semester of college, I like many freshman, had little idea of what I was actually getting into. I started out carrying over a lot of habits from high school that had somehow gotten me to graduation. Quickly I realized those habits would not work out for me at all if I wanted to succeed in college. I taught myself to learn new habits, habits that helped me adapt and learn in my classes. For an incoming freshman entering college with the same mindset as me, I would suggest picking up new and productive habits. I learned what worked for me through trial and error but eventually figured out fixing my sleep schedule, settings alarms and reminders, and heavy note taking helps a great amount.

In high school, as I was finishing my last years online because of the pandemic, I developed a few bad habits that resulted in me being lazy in school. It felt like I didn’t have to take it as serious anymore and i’m sure many incoming freshman feel the same, as a majority of the incoming freshman of 2022 also finished high school online. I strongly advise quickly fixing your sleep schedule. My sleep schedule was a huge mess when I began my college journey. I slept through morning classes and I would wake up in the middle of the day right before afternoon classes. Ultimately this resulted in me being too tired to do much of anything during class. The first step for me to becoming a more productive student was bettering my sleep. I found a solution in setting alarms and reminders. The calendar and clock apps on my phone became my best friends when it came to college. By setting sensible alarms I was able to wake up on time in the mornings, and just for precaution I would also set an alarm for 5 minutes before each of my classes start to make sure I was sat with my laptop and prepared. I saw a large difference in my performance in classwork and homework assignments. This change was nothing but positive, I saw my new habit pay off for me in a very positive way as it reflected in my grades.

Setting alarms was definitely a start, but I knew I had to do more. I had never really been a good note taker but I knew if I wanted to do better and retain the information I was learning, I would have to write down what I was learning. As I sat and listened to my classes, I kept my notes app on my phone open and took note of anything that would be important. I took note of what I was learning and also of assignment details and due dates. As somebody with a very bad memory, This helped me submit my assignments on time as well as study and properly learn the information being told to me. Every time I found myself stuck on an assignment, I remembered my notes and was able to open them up and read through it so I could do my assignments to the best of my ability. As I started doing this and eventually taking more and more notes, I once again saw my hard work paying off and my grades improving. It felt good to know that the new habits I taught myself were actually worth something. To incoming freshman and really anybody currently struggling in school, whether it be high school or college, Note taking may sound simple but it has helped me so much and helped me improve as a student.

My grades are still not perfect, and I still have many academic flaws and shortcomings but i’m trying to learn whatever I can to always improve and get better. I am just about to complete my first semester of college and the start was very rocky but overtime iv’e improved. Incoming freshman should not be too hard on themselves and do what they can to be better students. Picking up the habits of setting alarms and note taking was what I found strongly worked for me. As these are habits anybody can learn, they are strong suggestions of mine to anyone who is looking to become more productive in school. I plan to carry these habits into my next semester and adapt them if necessary for my new set of classes. Im sure in this upcoming semester i’ll pick up some new habits and learn more about myself as I get older and figure out what works for me.