It got dark earlier, it’s raining, the bottom of your pants is soaked, and — for those in the same weather situation as me — the snow is basically just mud. Yep, it’s the end of November.

This period between Halloween and Christmas, between fall and winter, between motivation and the irresistible urge to sleep. Why and, above all, how can you stay motivated during this time of year? Well, that's the subject of this article!

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Why It's Okay to Feel Unmotivated This Time of Year

Between October and December, the days get shorter, it gets dark early, and your exposure to natural light decreases a lot. Result: your brain produces less serotonin (the feel-good hormone) and more melatonin (the sleep hormone), so you feel more tired and sad.

On top of that, you’re between two holidays: the excitement of Halloween and the magic of Christmas. Your brain is no longer in any festive atmosphere; it has nothing to hold on to.

Then the second trimester is the slump: the first one is a new class, new teachers. You’re in the excitement of the moment, and the cold just adds to everything. Not the best period, we can agree.

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Romanticize Everything

Maybe you’ve read the article ''Can Romanticizing Your Life Actually Help Your Mental Health?'' by Nehir Cebecioğlu? Well, in that one, we learn through her testimony that romanticizing your life is beneficial for our mental health and, therefore, for our motivation!

But what does it mean to romanticize? It’s choosing to add a bit of beauty, awareness, and intention to what we already do. In short, adding a little spark that will change everything!

So here’s what you can do to motivate yourself to study:

1) Place Small Lamps or Even a Candle in Your Workspace:

If you create a cozy ambiance in your room, it will already feel less boring, you’ll be in your bubble, and more focused.

2) Make Yourself a Study Drink:

Choose, for example, coffee, matcha, or tea to accompany your studying!

3) Take Care of Yourself at the Same Time:

Put on a mask, do your skincare beforehand, and try to wake yourself up a bit from the long day.

4) Put Motivating Images Above Your Desk:

Personally, above my desk, I placed images of my dream university, and it helped me a lot to remind myself of my goal.

5) Find Your Study Playlist YouTuber:

When I say study YouTuber, I mean YouTubers who vlog their university life (like Harvard, Yale, etc, depending on your preference) or even “Study With Me” videos!

You can add many more things to this list of examples. The goal is to motivate yourself while taking time for yourself! But what is also very important during these cold and grey times are your habits/routine, both in the morning and at night.

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A Routine? No, Your Routine

We hear a lot of people say, “I wake up at 5 a.m. to take time for myself in the morning,” but trust me, if you went to bed at 11 p.m. scrolling on your phone, waking up at 5 a.m. won’t be fun, and you’ll probably stay in bed scrolling until 8 (talking from experience lol).

So you have to find your own rhythm and your own little habits. To inspire you, here’s mine:

Since I start classes at 8:30 in the morning, I get up around 6:30 because I know I’ll need 30 minutes to get out of bed. I get up at 7, wash my face, and get dressed in the clothes I chose the night before, depending on the weather of the day. I go down to my kitchen with my school bag, eat my pancakes while rereading my summaries for the day’s classes. Then, around 8, I take my headphones and my scarf and start my walk to school.

This is just an example, of course, but you see what I mean!

Setting small goals can also help you keep your motivation.

Small Goals = Better Results

Little situation: You have 4 assignments to do for next week, and it’s Friday evening. Are you more motivated to do all your assignments now or to tell yourself, “I’ll do the first one today, the second tomorrow, the third…”?

Spreading out your work will be a great asset and allow you to stay more motivated. Why? Because completing lots of mini-goals will give you more satisfaction than giving yourself one big one that’s out of your reach, which will demotivate you.

Create a kind of schedule to spread your tasks without being overwhelmed!

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Conclusion

In short, to survive this season: romanticize, organize, and create your little bubble so that this time of year is just as beautiful as the others!