This week’s guest is Linda O’Connor with some great tips for first-year ( or any year) college students. Thank you for stopping by and sharing these great tips.
It’s back to school time! Congratulations to all the students who are headed to post-secondary education at a college or university! It’s an exciting new adventure and just a little bit nerve-wracking. I’m a physician, and I’ve been working with students at a university health centre for a few years. There’s one piece of advice I’d like to pass along, especially to first-year students: expect the first few months to be chaotic. Change means chaos and chaos means stress.
The beginning of first-year and the end of the graduating year are the stormiest to weather. But the good news is that the chaos won’t last. New routines will be established, unfamiliar surroundings will become familiar, strangers will become friends, and order will be restored. Be patient, know that it’s a phase – keep your head up and your mind open to new experiences – and stay positive. You’ll come through it with more confidence and independence, and brimming with new-found knowledge!
My top ten tips for first-year university/college students:
- Stay on top of assigned readings and homework from day 1 – it’s a faster pace at this level of education and each week builds on the previous – don’t fall behind.
- Sleep 8 hours a night.
- Exercise every day – even if it’s only a twenty-minute power walk to get your heart rate up.
- Be social but don’t go crazy with drinking – max 2 -3 drinks a night, 2 nights a week – your future liver will thank you.
- Don’t do drugs – they aren’t an antidote to depression/anxiety or heartache – despite what your friend, next-door neighbor, co-worker, drinking buddy, internet research… might claim
- Wash your hands when you get back to your dorm/apartment to prevent the spread of germs.
- Ask for help if you’re floundering mentally, socially, or academically.
- You’re not going to like every course, but if you don’t enjoy any of the courses you’ve chosen, speak up – talk to an academic advisor about switching majors.
- Call your mom.
- Learn how to make five tasty quick meals –and embrace leftovers.
Trace Bennett, the hero of Perfectly Reasonable, is applying to medical school. He’s found the perfect person to help him ace the application process – Dr. Margo MacMillan. Except she wants nothing to do with medicine…or him.
Perfectly Reasonable (The Perfectly Series, Book 2)
Medical Romantic Comedy
Published by Soul Mate Publishing
Love what you do and do what you love. Sounds perfectly reasonable, but chances are, you’ll find your passion in the last place you look . . .
Margo MacMillan finished medical school, but in the process, her self-confidence and self-esteem took a beating. So for the sake of self-preservation, she’s stepped away from medicine to re-group. In the meantime, painting soothes her soul and pays the bills.
Trace Bennett set his sights on a medical degree and has to prepare the perfect medical school application. His big plan is to paint his condo for a little feng shui divine luck. When Margo shows up to paint, he realizes he’s found exactly what he’s looking for. He just has to convince Margo to share more than the art of medicine.
She’s got it. He wants it. It’s Perfectly Reasonable.
“So, you’re a doctor,” Trace said slowly.
Jeez. Back to that. “Yup.”
“How come a doctor is painting my living room?”
“Because you’re paying twice my usual fee,” Margo said with a cheeky grin.
“Shouldn’t you be…doctoring?”
Her smile slipped. He sounded like her mother. All that time, all that money, blah, blah, blah. “I could be, but at the moment, I’m painting.” She pointed to the paint sample hanging on the wall. “That’s the color I chose.”
He looked over. “I like it. Hopefully it will work.”
“I think it’ll work. Blue’s a neutral color. Looks good in this lighting and it’ll be a great backdrop with your metal furniture.”
“Hm-mm. I’m hoping it’ll be lucky.”
“Lucky?”
“Feng shui. Water and metal elements, á la blue paint and metal furniture, in the west and southwest rooms are supposed to bring divine luck this year. Good bye beige and wooden antiques.”
She smiled at him. He wants to get lucky? Look at those abs. Really, any color would do. “Sounds like you’ve researched this.”
He took a sip of coffee and set the cup down. “I have. I’m applying to medicine. Again. I’m giving it one last chance, and this time I’m doing it properly.”
“Medicine.”
“Yes.”
“And you think feng shui will help?” She reached for a small tool in the outer pocket of the tote bag and used it to pry open the lid from the first can of paint.
“Couldn’t hurt. And I want to cover all the bases. If I can get a little divine luck on my side, I’m all for it.”
She smiled at him as she stirred the paint. Hopefully he had more than feng shui up his sleeve. “I’ll get this done and get you started. I’m happy to help.” Especially if it meant her bills would get paid.
“Are you? You could be handy.”
“Oh I’m definitely handy,” she said with a smile.
Buy Link ~ http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0143ZW2P8
Meet the Author ~
Award-winning author Linda O’Connor started writing romantic comedies when she needed a creative outlet other than subtly rearranging the displays at a local home décor store. Her books have enjoyed bestseller status. When not writing, she’s a physician at an Urgent Care Clinic. She shares her medical knowledge in fast-paced, well-written, sexy romances – with an unexpected twist. Her favourite prescription to write? Laugh every day. Love every minute.
Website: http://www.lindaoconnor.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindaOConnorAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LindaOConnor98
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Linda-OConnor/e/B00S7CNLEA
Other Books in the Perfectly Series ~
Perfectly Honest ~ You never know where your words will take you.
Perfectly Reasonable ~ She’s got it. He wants it.
Perfectly Planned ~ She has it all perfectly planned. Too bad he doesn’t know that.
Perfectly Unpredictable ~ Falling in love is perfectly unpredictable.
Perfectly Christmas ~ Romantic and complicated…it’s perfectly Christmas.
Perfectly Together ~ They go perfectly together, if only they were in the same place.
Are you starting back to school this year as a student or a teacher? What is your biggest fear?
4 responses to “Tips for Beating the Chaos of Schoolby Linda O’Connor #college #stayhealthy #besmart”
Thanks so much for hosting me, Cathy! It’s a pleasure to visit.
Thank you for the awesome post.
Thank you both for sharing these. As a grandparent, parent, and former teacher, I echo their supreme importance.