Posts Tagged ‘NYC college life’
College Student Grocery Haul @ LifeThyme Market
Saturday, November 19th, 2022Procrastinating! We All Do It.
Wednesday, November 25th, 2020Show me anyone who claims they never procrastinate, and I’ll show you a liar. And, if you’re one of the unicorns who doesn’t, then you are a lucky person indeed. Certainly, throughout my high school career, I’ve had teachers lecture me about how to manage my time better in order to avoid procrastinating.
Then, in college, if I ask a professor for an extension on a deadline, there’s a real chance that I’ll get a snide remark about time management and procrastination. I’m certain that I’m not the only one with this experience, either; the common train of thought in the academic community seems to be that procrastination results from the student’s time mismanagement. While not entirely false, it is not the full story: there’s something irrational about procrastinating.
Logically, we should all be motivated to complete our work, because that is more conducive to happiness. Instead, it seems that nearly every college student participates in procrastination; possibly because it is influenced by psychology. Our innate “fight or flight” reflexes have adapted to the societies we live in; long gone are the days of having to run or fight for your life, rather, our battles have become more “mundane.” The issue, though, is that our survival instincts have remained as sharp as ever, not that that’s necessarily a bad thing.
What it does mean is that parts of the brain will see a problem– for instance, let’s say you have a lot of deadlines on the same day — these instincts will interfere with your cognition. There’s two options here: you can “fight,” or work through until your assignments are complete, or you can “flee,” avoiding your work until it’s absolutely necessary (see: procrastinating).
Another way of thinking about it is, we are driven to do the things we do thanks to motivation. A number of factors weigh into your sense of motivation, and they work against demotivating factors. If there are more demotivating factors than motivating factors in a decision, the result is procrastination. As your deadline approaches, the motivating factors gain strength until you overcome your procrastination. Unfortunately, this process does not always leave enough time to actually do whatever it is you needed to do. The best way to avoid procrastination, then, is to consider what is “demotivating” you and figure out how to resolve these demotivations! Listed below are some examples of factors that can discourage your sense of motivation.
- Anxiety and Depression. It’s pretty obvious, but they are two major factors that will weigh heavily on your motivation. Mental health is one of those things that, unfortunately, you’re going to have to work around. After all, there is no way to just “cure” either anxiety or depression. One thing to be weary of is setting off a feedback loop of anxiety. Oftentimes, I will find that large tasks impose a ton of anxiety on me. In response, I procrastinate, which only builds up my anxiety, because I know I have to do it. It is important to be aware of this phenomenon so that you can identify it in yourself, and act accordingly. Step back, take a deep breath and organize your thoughts so that you can at least consider your next steps.
- You’re a perfectionist. This is common in creative work: oftentimes there might be a disconnect between what you are visualizing and what you are creating. Certainly, it is something that I struggle with– especially when writing. It is a frustrating thing, when you can’t properly verbalize what your ideas are. Try not to let your desire to produce high-quality work impede your process; instead, use it as a driving factor to do a good job. Recognize that, especially in schoolwork, perfect is simply unnecessary, and the anticipated standards may actually be much lower than your own standards.
- “This is future me’s problem.” Again, I am very guilty of this one. It can be very easy to see a task as unnecessary because it can be done in the future. It can also be easy to slip into, because it applies to the very mundane; sometimes I won’t make my bed simply because I know it won’t be a problem until I try to go to bed, or I push off putting my clothes away properly because I know I’m just gonna put them on later at some point, so instead I’ll just throw them on a chair.
While things might be inconvenient to do now, it is important to recognize that part of taking care of yourself is taking care of your future self, too. Try making things a little easier on your future self, sometimes.
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By Sebastian Ortega
Sebastian is a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology, where he majors in Fashion Business Management. He’s worked behind the scenes of New York Fashion Week with the company Nolcha Shows, and in the office of Elrene Home Fashions. Some day, he hopes to be able to make his own claim in the fashion industry by starting his own business.
For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC, from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourages them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing, and services.
At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.
The Diary of a College Student: Adjusting to Life Off-Stage and into the Lecture Hall
Monday, April 2nd, 2018In having been an actor for over 10 years of my life the adjustment that I experienced in not pursuing acting further in college was interesting, to say the least. Before that, life had been a world of opportunity in the sense that anywhere could have been a stage upon which to demonstrate my craft, my commitment, my skill, etc..
Upon arriving in New York City as a freshman college student, I found myself searching for something new around which to center my life. Something that could fill the void I felt inside me. I wanted to substitute something for the hours of intense training, detail-oriented rehearsals, and a creativity that was conditioned to image the sufferings and joys of human existence. I was in the process of reimagining my life, adjusting to my new life off-stage, in lecture halls, and among unfamiliar peers; in the manner that I would live, the activities that I would pursue daily, the motivation that I felt that pushed me toward always becoming better than what I was the day before, etc.. I believe that this time, a time of life re-imagined, can relate to, and is shared by, those who experience a dramatic shift in their day-to-day routines, their sense of limitation, and their sense of liberty when choosing what to prioritize in life.
This especially applies to college students, namely Freshmen, who recently removed themselves from a familiar environment full of routine and safety. In attending an out-of-town, an out-of-state, or international university, students are faced with the difficult task of taking what they knew as life and drastically reimaging it to suit their needs in their new localities. The difficulties arises from temptation. Temptation that is reinforced by the general newfound liberty of independent living. Spiderman taught me at a young age that “with great power comes great responsibility,” and it is a fact of human existence that ameliorating one’s liberty of choice, freedom of expression, and right to self-determination is directly relatable to one’s sense power.
So in here lies the subject of responsibility. What this essay aims to make palpable is the difficulty that exists in maintaining one’s sense of responsibility and pragmatism during this time of life re-imagined. Before, we discussed the opportunities college students have in trying to find the best student deals, spark new relationships, curate better hygiene, etc. when in an unfamiliar place, such as attending a new school. However, it is this greater realization of the individual’s power of choice that is the true subject of this discourse. I don’t want to sound cliché, but for new college students, there is no greater excitement then determining exactly what it is that makes you happy and using those sources of happiness to your advantage.
Image Credit: http://www.scei.edu.au/news
The overwhelming nature of arriving in a different city, into a situation where there are no longer limits on the things you can try, or finding where those things will begin generally brings anxiety with it. It is good to feel that anxiety, because it means that you value what your life is and your happiness in living it. If I could go back and tell myself a tidbit of advice freshman year, I would tell him this: there is no greater opportunity missed than living a life that prioritizes your health, your happiness, and your ability to make patient deliberated decisions. That may seem like an Olympian sized feat, but it begins with the littlest of things. For example, when one prioritizes their health and ability to focus and deliberate, than drinking the night before a test perhaps wouldn’t even enter one’s mind as a viable option.
Image Credit: https://www.pragmait.com/therapyboss/blog/short-term-or-long-term-goals-still-required/
It may seem a little extreme. However, when I was adjusting to my life off-stage there were many decisions that I see now as being nothing but a hindrance on my overall goal of being happy. I was more concerned with my momentary happiness and less concerned with prioritizing my long term goals. It is easy to try and find the most exciting thing to do as a young new college freshman or sophomore, but it is all too easy to get caught up in the overwhelming liberty that comes with newfound independence. Always prioritize the life you want to be living and don’t simply live in the moment, and I promise that your life re-imagined will be a rewarding one to live.
By James Rodriguez
A Texan born and raised, James Rodriguez grew up in San Antonio TX, and has recently graduated from New York University, having studied corporate and political publicity. He sings, plays guitar, studies French, etc. in his free time, and when given the opportunity to share advice that he thought noteworthy with future or current college students, he jumped on the chance. He believes that there is something incredibly important in obtaining knowledge from those who are going through or have recently finished dealing with the difficulties one is seeking advice on. Which is exactly the aim of the Campus Clipper: to share the best advice possible in order to better the experiences of students who are struggling now. Because he was once that lost college student who was searching for instruction and who felt out-of-place and in need of direction, he hopes that his words can relate to someone’s struggle and help along the way.
For over 20 years, the Campus Clipper has been offering awesome student discounts in NYC, from the East Side to Greenwich Village. Along with inspiration, the company offers students a special coupon booklet and the Official Student Guide, which encourage them to discover new places in the city and save money on food, clothing and services.
At the Campus Clipper, not only do we help our interns learn new skills, make money, and create wonderful e-books, we give them a platform to teach others. Check our website for more student savings and watch our YouTube video showing off some of New York City’s finest students during the Welcome Week of 2015.
Going Out in the City on a College Budget: Five Whys and Five Hows
Tuesday, August 21st, 2012Growing up, going to “the city” (that is, New York City) meant dressing up in whatever dress I wore for Easter Sunday or Christmas Eve and going out to dinner at a Zagat-rated restaurant somewhere in Little Italy with my family. In those days, Mom and Dad paid. When I first moved to the city from Westchester four years ago, going out meant throwing on a shirt and skirt in hopes of looking somewhat decent on the line of an overhyped 18+ club that I or my roommates were “on the list” for, thanks to a Facebook group that boasted to keep us up-to-date on the hottest and cheapest NYC college-age nightlife. I quickly denied the existence of such a life.
pitfalls of fake IDs
When I turned twenty-one, I retired my once-used, two-years-expired fake ID that flaunted the image of a girl who looks absolutely nothing like me except for the fact that we are both 5’4” and have brown hair and brown eyes. At 5PM on my twenty-first birthday, I entered a heavenly paradise: Trader Joe’s Wine Shop. Knowing that I would, without a doubt, be carded there, I stood on line with two bottles of Three-Buck-Chuck and my awkward but somehow freeing sixteen-year-old smile staring at me from my driver’s license.
When it comes to going out, the city has much to offer besides Trader Joe’s Wine Shop. Bars are everywhere, nightclubs are plentiful, and parties often literally happen in the streets and under them in the subways. Having gone to Manhattan for college, I was faced with the challenge of the city in addition to traditional college distractions. Still, I believe that the ups outnumber and outweigh the downs when it comes to the typical college student’s desire to celebrate the weekend, weekday, or lack of knowing what day it is.
- You can leave your apartment without a set destination. Don’t know where to go? Just go. Look for “two for one” signs. Follow crowds. Gravitate towards noise. Ask loud people you cross on the street where they just came from and hope they remember.
- You meet people (whether you want to or not). Though you may unwillingly find out about a stranger’s hygiene, astrological sign, and pick-up techniques, you may also make some new friends or at least go home with an interesting story or characters for that screenplay you’ve been working on.
- You don’t have to designate a driver. Subways, taxis, and sidewalks are a New Yorker’s best friends. Because few people going to college in the city have a car with them, there is no need to draw straws at the beginning of the night (though you may want to designate a pack leader to lead the way home if you’re sleepily returning at three in the morning).
Designate your shoes when you don't designate a driver. Walking in heels can be tough!
- You can always find a place to eat. From cookies to dollar pizza to street meat to pretty much anything, food is always available and often cheap.
- Nowhere is off-limits. Though you may have to wait a bit longer for subways to arrive the closer it gets to sunrise, every borough is at your fingertips. This also allows for you to try a new place when “the usual” just isn’t enough.
The bad news? Money doesn’t grow on trees, and, if it did, you still wouldn’t have any because you likely don’t have any trees growing on your fire escape. The city is always outside your door, always awake, and always hungry for your wallet. Plus, the fact that you may or may not already be going broke paying for a college education doesn’t help any.
However, if there’s one thing I’ve learned in the past four years, it’s that you should always be prepared. If you plan out at least part of your night ahead of time, you don’t have to pay much for a night of fun.
- Eat dinner home. Instead of going out to eat, make dinner with some friends in someone’s kitchen or have a potluck dinner. This is often cheaper and healthier, and allows you to start the weekend celebration together and then head out when everyone is accounted for.
Leave yourselves a large tip with all the money you save when you celebrate at home with friends.
- Buy your own alcohol. If you are 21 and drink, look online for which liquor stores or beer distributors have the best deals on your beverage(s) of choice, and hit them up before they close. Make your own concoctions, which can be fun! And, if you do go out afterwards, you’ll probably be less tempted to spend money on overpriced drinks.
- Arrive early. Many locations (bars and clubs alike) that charge cover fees charge differently according to what time it is. If your usual bar has a good happy hour, meet up with a few friends for cheap drinks. If a club says that admission is free before ten o’clock, consider getting there early. Don’t forget to account for the time it takes to wait on line! Also, when possible, be female—you’ll probably pay less to get in to some places.
- Have your own dance/karaoke/movie/theme party. Sometimes a night in can be even more rewarding than a night out.
- Take advantage of your college or university. While you might associate school events with middle school dances when the sexes stood on opposite sides of the room and stared at their feet or giggled in circles, school-sponsored events can often be fun. The people putting them together are probably either paid to do it (and probably at least somewhat good at it) or they are college students just like you with similar ideas of fun. Check your school events calendar, as well as any deals that your school and local businesses offers like student-price movie tickets, coupons, brochures, and other student savings. You’ll be surprised what you can find!
It's who you're with that counts most.
Of course, there is no perfect formula for saving money, but over time you should discover what works for you and learn your own methods along the way. While you’re in college, remember that you’re in college. Remember that you’re not the only one concerned about saving money while having fun, that there are whole schools of students worried about the same thing. In this realization you can find your savior—your friends. No matter where you’re going or what you’re doing, surround yourself by good people and you can’t go wrong.
Take advantage of a great happy hour at Cuba!
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Carina, New York University. Read my blog and check out my Twitter! FOLLOW ME!!
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