What an absolute bummer! Packing up, moving out! Sayin’ bye till who knows when! Every crazy course online! It’s freakin’ me out bro. Graduate in style, NOT!
Settled into this new normal yet? Yes? No? Maybe so? Well, whatever… It’s time to lace up and do what you need to do. Get due dates down. Read text pages. Write the paper. Answer the questions. Research your part of the project. Add your five cents worth to discussion boards.
You’ve got this! Yea, it’s not how you figured the semester would finish up but it is what it is. Umm…that really is one way of making sense of this unexpected, mostly miserable situation. As I see it, you have a couple of choices. You ALWAYS have a CHOICE!
1. ACCEPT: Like I said, it is what it is. Grumbling or crying about it gets some attention for a few days but then what? It’s still your stuff to deal with. Negativity pulls us down, down, down. Positive thoughts build energy to get things done. BTW, acknowledge the bad thoughts and feelings; get it all out in healthy ways and then
commit to the positive. Down with fear! Up with courage!
2. ADAPT: Find a few things you can change to make things better. Different work space? Revamped study schedule? Need a Starbucks, green tea, Tropicana, or mocha frappe’? Doritos, popcorn, pizza? Quite likely your biggest challenge is changing an attitude.
3. AVOID: Really? You bet! Leaving and giving up is a choice. Avoid the whole thing and just veg out the rest of the semester. Of course, there may be an extenuating circumstance that requires opting out of the last weeks of school. I hope that’s not so but if it is, resolve to accept and adapt as best you can. Avoiding begs the question: What’s the cost to me long and short term? To others? Worth considering.
Disappointment and frustration may rule your days and weeks right now but they don’t have to. As a college prof, I’ve been listening to and supporting students for a long time. Check out the possibilities. I’d love to hear how you’re managing academics amidst this pandemic. My email address: info@janekcoaching.com Website: janekcoaching.com
