December Reflection

During the Christmas break I was really struggling with academic stress, so after seeking support from the university I secured an extension for my work which had made it easier for me to schedule my time and get it done on time. I am still trying to work on my progress by securing primary research and speaking to experts which is proving a little more difficult – most people are very busy!

I also started on the visuals because I always leave that until later which is something I don’t want to do again, I am trying to improve on my visual communication also by choosing images, colours etc, which help the reader to get a better understanding of my topic.

I finished my seasonal job at Lush this month, I enjoyed my time with the company and learned a lot of new skills and gained confidence talking to employees and customers, which was something we had to do working at Lush. I can use this to help make connections with people for primary research with my newly found confidence talking to new people. I think I can also work better under pressure now, alongside targets and goals which were set at work for us to meet. All the skills are transferable to academic and professional settings, which can benefit me later on.

I enjoyed the Christmas break, although I did prioritise down time over work, oh dear! Even so I did manage to get some bits done, whilst juggling a part-time job and buying Christmas presents. One thing that is getting me down is the literature review, I know what I’m doing, but I’m just questioning myself on which references to use (green and amber preferably) and whether I’m going to have enough surrounding my quite niche topic area. Everyone seems to know what they are doing, and I feel behind – but I think I just need to focus on myself, which happens to be an area of discussion in my report, perhaps I need to take a leaf out of my own book.

In terms of the future, I want to have my literature review done and then I will feel like I’m on track and I can see the end. I am hoping that 2022 brings me motivation, happiness and productivity and that next year I am happy with my time at university and the projects that I’ve completed my three years at NTU.

Quote of the month – “Don’t make permanent decisions based off temporary emotions.”