Hello again! I’m back with some tips for university students (and young adults alike!!). Because we all know that as soon as you move out your life shifts
dramatically and sometimes you just need a little helping hand.
1.
Don’t go out and buy all of your textbooks first hand.
Okay so this is kind of a given but text books are so expensive. I had a little bit of a difficulty getting my textbooks second hand since I’m an
English major and most people like to hold onto books they’ve read but I found a fair few of mine second hand and instead of it costing my $400+ for my
first semester it rounded out at $162.
2.
Don’t spend all of your weekly/fortnightly/monthly pay on entertainment.
I mean entertainment in every form of this. From alcohol to going out to the movies and even including dinner at a nice place (or out to dinner
generally!!) I see a lot of people who blow their budgets on alcohol/going out a lot and then they reach the end of their money and realise they can’t
afford to buy food for the week/month/fortnight.
3.
Top up your meal cards.
I live on-campus with meals not included in our fortnightly rent (which is awful). If you are in the same position that your meals aren’t included you
should make sure there is money on that card. I know that there are points in the week where I give up on cooking food and want some cheap and easy. The
meals where I am are $6 so it isn’t a huge deal and it’s nice every now and again to not cook and also not spend $20 on a meal.
4.
Try and work out your time management.
I find that most weeks I struggle to have enough hours in my days to get things done. Between class, personal life, friends, family and all of the other
nitty gritty things I find myself running short on time. I have, however, found that if you write yourself up a plan for doing things each week that you
are more likely to get them done. At the start of each week I write myself a sticky note with things to get done and tick them off day-by-day. This is also
a really good trick if, like me, you have anxiety and think you’re accomplishing nothing. Even menial tasks like getting out of bed and brushing your teeth
everyday can make you feel like you have accomplished something.
5.
Take some time out for yourself.
Once a week, or fortnight, I like to set some time out for myself and do something special. Recently I came back from a camping trip on Bruny Island, thoroughly
enjoyable and I highly recommend it, and that was my “me time” for the fortnight. Some weeks I will take such a long shower that I steam up the bathroom
mirrors. Do things that make yourself feel well-rested and relaxed, and take your time with them.
6.
Get into some form of exercise.
With my schedule as school-oriented as it is I find myself sitting down a lot and not moving as much as I should. I break my days up with a half-hour to an
hour of yoga. Normally a half-hour in the morning and a half-hour at night but this depends a lot on how early my classes start. I have other friends who
go jogging down the beach or will go to our on-campus gym but I highly recommend getting out and getting active for at least a half hour a day.
7.
Eat healthy and drink water.
I know, it’s tempting to eat all the terrible foods you were never allowed in the house when you were a kid. I know that you just want to binge but oh my
god is it important not to. For the first couple of days living in my own “place” (so loosely termed there) I ate terribly. Honestly I slipped back into my
stress eating days which is never good. Now I eat fruit everyday and drinking plenty of water (which is great if you want to regulate your body!!)
8.
Don’t forget your friends and family.
This can be a hard one when you seem to always be busy but remember that the people that surround you are always there for you. I struggle with this one
sometimes because I like to keep to myself, to a certain extent, and find that sometimes my room is more comfortable then any sort of social situation. But
it’s healthy to see people and get out there.
I’ll see you all next time.
Chloe, xo.
linking up with Essentially Jess
