Five tips to pace yourself throughout the academic year

Introduction 

Welcome back to Term Two. I hope that you had a good break over the winter holidays and feel more refreshed and recovered, ready to start studying again. If you are feeling refreshed, it is because a substantial break away from your work enables you to recover and revitalise. For example, De Bloom and colleagues found that having a vacation had substantial impact on reducing levels of work-related fatigue, demonstrating the benefits of having a holiday. However, they also demonstrated that these are short-lived, therefore, daily recovery may be a better way for managing your work-related fatigue. I am therefore sharing five pieces of advice below, based on Sonnentag and Fritz’s Recovery Experience (2007),to help you to improve your recovery from your studies, which may also have a positive impact on your productivity and wellbeing.

1. Take control of non-work time

First of all, it is important to take control of your non-working time. This may be in terms of planning breaks in your study schedule, or it may be in terms of how you spend your non-work time. The more in control that you feel, the less energy you will spend trying balance all of your roles (for example, work, studies, caring, social etc.). This will help you have a more positive recovery experience, but could also make you more efficient as you will have more energy to complete your tasks.

2. Do something that develops your mind or skills

Sonnentag and Fritz (2007) refer to activities in your non-working time which develop your mind and skills as Mastery. This is about completing tasks which involve concentration, but enables you to progress as well. This could be something like (but not limited to) learning a new language, playing an instrument, competing in a sport, or knitting. These activities help to build your resources such as self-efficacy but also uses different cognitive resources to those use at work, which allows you to recover. The more different the activity is from your work/studies, the better. Remember, this could be anything as long as it involves having to concentrate to complete the task, as well as allows you to develop and progress your ability to complete that task.

3. Do something engaging

It is important not to think about work tasks during non-work time, allowing you to psychologically detach from your studies and work. This could involve engaging in an activity which absorbs your attention, not allowing space for you to think about your work or studies. This will mean that you use different resources, enabling your work and study resources to replenish. Unlike mastery, this does not involve having to develop or progress, for example an engaging film or book will help you to detach from your work and stop you thinking about it. Think about what captures your interest and absorbs your attention to block out your thoughts about working. Some of you may have to work harder to block out work than others. This is okay as everyone is different; just try to find the strategy which works for you.

4. Physically put your work away

In an ideal world you would have a space where you can work which is in a physically different location to where you spend non-work time. Examples may be an office space, working in the library or even in a different room to where you spend your non-work time. If possible, avoid working in your bedroom as this would be sharing your work and recovery space. However, this is not always possible. The next best thing is to physically put your work away, such as pack your laptop up or put a cover over your desk so that you do not have the visual cues of work. This will enable you to physically detach from your work, which in turn, supports your psychological detachment from your work. Technically this should be tip 3.b) as psychological and physical forms are both the same concept of detachment.

5. Do something that you enjoy

There is a common phrase which implies that doing something different is as good as recovery (variety is as good as rest). However, whilst there is an element of truth, this is not completely the case. Sonnentag and Fritz (2007) highlight the importance of enjoyment when engaging in non-work activities. When considering the above tips, ask yourself ‘will I enjoy this time?’ to help you plan your recovery activities. If you do not enjoy your non-work time, then it may not be the best way to spend it if you are thinking about recovery!

Bonus: Go outside into nature

I know that I said five tips, so consider this one a bonus! Engaging with nature has many benefits for your health and wellbeing, including recovery. For example, Ulrich (1984)) found that patients in hospital who had a view of the gardens through a window were more likely to recover quickly than those with no view, with these benefits attributed to being able to see the nature outside. There are many theories as to why humans gain benefits from engaging with nature, however, the most relevant to this article is Kaplan and Kaplan’s Attention Restoration Theory (1989). They argue that you use directed (or voluntary) attention when you work (i.e. you direct your focus), however, in nature you use your passive (or involuntary) attention to take in the natural scenes, without directing your focus too much. As you are primarily using your involuntary attention, this allows your directed attention resources to replenish. Regardless of the reason as to why nature is beneficial, it is widely agreed that engaging in nature has positive, restorative effects. Going bird watching, or taking a walk in the park, or even sitting in a garden will all have a beneficial impact on your recovery.

Conclusion

We all may think “I need a holiday” when we are feeling fatigued an in need of a break, however, as you can see, it is the daily recovery which will help you to manage your work-related fatigue. Take control of your non-work time to do something that you enjoy. The more engaging it is, the better this allows you to detach from your studies. Adding in an activity which helps you build self-efficacy and esteem will also be beneficial. If this is not an option, find some green space to spend some time on yourself to recover. Engaging in at least some of these activities will help you pace yourself through this term and the rest of your studies.

About the author

Dr Iain Wilson is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology within NTU Psychology. He specialises in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning within Psychology, with particular interests in employability learning and written reflective assessments. Iain is currently working on a sabbatical, in the 2022-23 academic year, which is evaluating a new model for assessing reflective writing, as well as developing resources to support the teaching, learning and assessment of reflection.