Hello everyone!

Happy new year all! I hope you’ve shaken off the January blues, and are ready to start this year off with a bang!

Despite the cold weather, we all know what season it is: Deadline season! I know everyone will be wrapped up in assignments that they wished they had started a few weeks earlier (I plead guilty!), and cramming until the crack of dawn! But it’s easy to forget that the most important thing during this season are not the deadlines, but you! Yes, you!

In the panic and craziness of this time of year, we tend to sacrifice our sleep, diet and general well-being to get the best grade possible. But speaking from personal experience, it just doesn’t work like that! You might feel that staying up entire nights, skipping breakfast and putting off that gym sesh might win you a bit of time for work, but at the end of the day, I’m afraid it comes back to bite you! You might have more time on your hands, but boy, will your work efficiency nosedive! Not only will you not get any work done, you’ll also be tired, hungry and brain-hazed — definitely not a recipe for success!

So during this stressful time of year, be sure to take care of yourself as well as your assignments, which means getting plenty of fluids on board, taking a brisk walk outside, and eating something other than microwave pasta! And what’s wrong with indulging in a bit of Netflix every now and then?

And if you really want to get away from the books for a while, I would prescribe a bit of rewarding volunteering with the Hub!

Perhaps even lend a hand at the Brixton Soup Kitchen this Wednesday? Have fun, give back to your community, release some stress, and build your CV?

I don’t usually toot my own horn, but damn, isn’t that a brilliant idea!

So there’s my prescription to maintain some sanity during this hectic deadline season — be sure to complete the course and I’m sure you’ll smash these deadlines out of the park!

May the odds be ever in your favour!

Mikail