Can't You Hear Me Knocking?

This morning, I was writing some cover letters for summer internships and provided a link to my blog. Of course I had to test said link and when I opened Lattes with Liv, I realized I hadn't posted since the beginning of January!

To say that this semester has been a whirlwind thus far is a bit of an understatement. There's always a bit of a transition period at the beginning of any semester, but this one has been a bit extreme! I've been chugging along, trying to get through everything that I needed to do, not really taking any time for just myself. Yesterday I finally took an evening off & even though I was up way past my bed time, it was completely worth it!

Since February is just around the corner (but really, when did that happen?) now is a great time to take some time for yourself! Even if it means enjoying 10 minutes in the morning with your coffee and something to read (I suggest The Skimm)

This is also a great time to go back and revisit your resolutions or goals. Check your progress (and if you're like me & you realize you're not doing so hot, make a plan to do better!).

My blog calendar has officially made my to-do list to help me keep up with posting!

Did you get lost in the beginning of the semester? How are you coping?

2014 Goals & New Directions

Looking back on my posts for 2013, it took me almost an entire month to create goals for the year & I didn't do a stellar job of keeping up with them or blogging about them! If you missed them - goals for the year, February recap, mid-year recap.

This year, I'm going to change direction just a little bit. Rather than setting a theme for each month, I'm going to pick a couple for each quarter. To say my brain has become more business-oriented since coming to college is total truth! 

I'm working on a few umbrella goals & some that will continue through all of 2014:

Create an editorial calendar for Lattes with Liv (series are coming back!)
Create a study schedule & stick with it (one of my biggest weaknesses)
Read at least 1 novel per month (January - check!)
Exercise at least once per week

What are some of your goals for Q1 and the rest of 2014?

Monday Melodies: Snow Songs

In the entire history of Michigan State University, there have only been six snow days. Today is one of them. With forecasts calling for single digit temps with a windchill of -35, I'm planning on spending all day inside!

It's been quite a while since I've had a Michigan snow day, so in honor of the historic occasion I've complied a list of snow-inspired songs!

Punching the Universe | Background Download

The past few days, my feedly has been full of new year posts, not that I would expect anything different! There was one that stuck out to me - Maxie's post on ilo inspired. If you don't read ilo inspired, you're seriously missing out, go follow now!

One particular line from her poem really stood out to me. There's no reason to throw punches at the Universe.

As soon as I read it, I knew it needed to be a background! So, we have the first background of 2014!

Download & use on all your devices! It's designed that it can be resized or cropped for almost anything electronic.

Five on Friday: Fresh Start

How many times have you read/heard "new year, new me"? If you ask me, just once is too many! But there are some things you can do to give yourself a fresh start and on the right foot for 2014!

One | Unsubscribe from unwanted email lists. How many times do you go through your inbox and archive 75% of the emails without even opening them? Such a waste of time! If you're getting emails that aren't worth the effort or time to open, they're worth the effort to unsubscribe from. Your inbox will be such a happier place!
Can bear the thought of not having access to all the deals? Create a new gmail just for email lists & online shopping. You only have to log in when you're going to buy something & aren't overcrowded with unnecessary emails.

Two | Clean out your phone. I have 830 photos on my phone right now. How many of those do I actually need? Probably less than 50. Find your USB and download your photos. Then go to town deleting them! You'll want lots of space for 2014 memories.

Three | Organize your apps. Read: folders are your new best friend. Carly from The College Prepster inspired me to condense and rethink all of the apps on my phone. It's been life changing! (Okay, maybe not life changing, but pretty awesome!) Having the apps I use the most on my home screen & keeping everything else to the second screen saves me so much swiping! It also helped me prioritize the apps I have on my phone. Haven't used it in the last 3 months? Away it goes.

Four | Get prepped for the upcoming semester. Now is the perfect time to set up folders, write down assignments & don't forget to buy books! It's also a good time to go through all of your papers/notes from last semester to determine what is worth keeping and what can go.

Five | Financial management. Now is a great time to gather all your information for your taxes & start a folder for your 2014 taxes. I highly recommend a mint account to track your money. Also a great time to set a budget for January!

How are you regrouping for 2014?

"Resolutions"

Happy New Year!  

May your 2013 be filled with smiles, love and lots of laughter.  May you always be able to complete your goals and follow your dreams.

Always Have Courage

Today begins what I consider to be the 7 day grace period of creating goals for 2014. Now, some of you may remember from the beginning of 2013 how I despise the word resolutions. There is such a negative connotation - who actually achieves their new year resolutions?? If you know someone - please let me know, I would like to congratulate them!!

I'm still working on my goals for the year and this year I've decided to take a slightly different approach. Last year I choose to create themes for each month, this year I'm going to take it quarter by quarter. So instead of creating goals for the entire year, I'm just going to focus on the first three months.

I realized that life in college not only means lots of change, but also means lots of constant reevaluation. My goals from January weren't as relevant by the time November rolled around. Hopefully going by quarter will help keep all my goals on track and achievable!

I'm also working on creating a personal mission statement.

Right now my two big goals are being a better student & being a better blogger. Consider The Classy Collegiate under construction -- lots of new things are brewing, including a new name!