With the arrival of the holidays, it can be difficult to remain motivated for the rest of the semester. If only we could just forego the rest of the semester and instead, go pumpkin picking and enjoy crisp nights going caroling. The good news is, you can still enjoy your holidays and do these fun things, and stay motivated to finish the semester with good grades.

Study with your friends

This is a fun tip that will help you stay motivated no matter what time of year it is. Learning is more fun when you have someone else to do it with you, and it’s also great to have someone else to collaborate with. In fact, having someone else to help you do homework will bring new perspectives into the equation, meaning you’ll get things done more quickly and you’ll actually learn more. Even if you can’t study in person together, chatting online with your friends or even video conferencing while you study will give you the company you want.

Take breaks

This may seem counterproductive, but taking breaks is actually super important to staying motivated and getting your work done efficiently. It’s kind of like this: let’s say that you’re a lumberjack. If you spend all day sawing down trees, your saw will get kind of dull and won’t work as effectively. In order to be able to work faster, you should take a break to sharpen your saw, and then get back to sawing down trees. Translating this to real life, if you don’t take breaks, you won’t be as effective when you study. Just make sure to not let your study breaks last too long so you don’t get behind on your work.

Reward yourself

Another great way to stay motivated is to use the relief of the holidays to reward yourself once you’ve finished your work for the day. You wanted to go to a holiday party with some friends tonight? Set expectations for the work you want to complete, and once it’s done, you can go! It’s a simple way to keep yourself accountable, and you’ll also enjoy your reward a lot more if you know that you’ve earned it by working hard and staying on track with your school work. Just make sure that your expectations are reasonable but also not too lenient. It can help to set up a schedule for a week so you know what must get done by the end of the week, and you can pace yourself accordingly.

So have fun. work hard, and finish strong!