March 5, 2024
Today is Super Tuesday, the anniversary of the Boston Massacre and Stalin’s death, and the last Tuesday before Spring Break. Do with that coincidence what you will
Two thoughts as we head into a week off: take a week off, and come back organized for the last push of the semester.
There is a ton of research on the importance of taking vacations. This has been a nutty semester (and year), and it’s likely to get nuttier. Taking some time to relax next week will make your mind sharper, make your decision making better, and make you happier. Like a lot of my advice, this risks being “do as I say, not as I do” but I am going to try hard to stop obsessively checking email and won’t start (most) mornings with Punchbowl and Politico. I encourage you to do the same.
March and April can feel a little chaotic. You have exams, papers, decisions about internships and jobs, and some of you have the added stress of graduation. SMPA also has more events, there is more going on around campus and DC, and world events aren’t going anywhere. One way to survive the rest of March and April is to plan ahead. Write down all your academic, GW, professional and other deadlines. Build a schedule backward to today to make the work manageable. Do the work in chunks as you can, rather than hoping you can get it all done in a rush at the end. And if you need help, ask for it. The Roberts Fund is here for financial emergencies, GW has mental health support, and professors have office hours for a reason. Let us know if you’re stressed or need help, and we’ll do what we can.
Onward into Super Tuesday and SOTU Thursday. After this week, we will all need a break.