The daily grind of university life is an accomplishment worth romanticizing
The start of a new year often brings a surge of ambition. Students return to campus with big goals of acing exams, consistent workouts and perfectly balanced schedules. Yet, as the weeks unfold, the initial momentum fades and the reality of the university grind sets in.
Alongside dreams to remain consistent and dwindling motivation, romanticizing the mundane of university life could perhaps foster mindfulness and motivation to last you the entire semester.
Romanticizing the mundane of university life could perhaps foster mindfulness and motivation to last you the entire semester.
Like many students, I begin each semester with ambitious goals and fresh motivation. Yet, as the semester unfolds and responsibilities build up, those goals often take a backseat, leaving my early enthusiasm behind.
With motivation seemingly lost in the hustle, it is easy to overlook the value hidden in the simplest parts of your day. The seemingly insignificant moments, such as grabbing a coffee, walking to campus, or studying with your friends, hold the power to ground you.
Romanticizing the mundane offers a refreshing perspective on daily life. It encourages students to embrace the repetitive aspects of their routines rather than viewing them as monotonous chores. This mindset not only helps break the cycle of boredom but also fosters resilience and sustainable motivation.
University life is filled with highs and lows. Accepting the challenges that accompany it can be mentally taxing. Maintaining a routine committed to the simplest aspects of life could help you keep going even when you’re at your lowest times, long after your resolution fades.
Maintaining a routine committed to the simplest aspects of life could help you keep going even when you’re at your lowest times, long after your resolution fades
I believe that embracing the mundane amid the hustle of university life can help students cultivate mindfulness and resilience. Focusing on the small, ordinary moments in daily routines may offer a healthier and more fulfilling approach to the academic journey.
Perhaps it’s time to consider rewriting the narrative of success to celebrate and value living mindfully in the present and seeing the beauty of each day.
Bring balance to your routine with apps that support both productivity and wellness
In an age of endless distractions and packed schedules, finding a balance between productivity and well-being has never been more important. Whether you are a student, a professional, or someone looking to simplify your day, finding the right tools can make all the difference.
Notion
One of the most versatile options is Notion, which has gained popularity for its ability to act as a note-taking app, task manager and project organizer all in one. Its customizable templates allow users to create a workspace tailored to their needs, from tracking assignments to managing personal goals.
Notion is available on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac and through a web browser, with a free plan and paid tiers starting at $8.00 per month. It is best suited for users who want a highly personalized productivity system, though it does have a bit of a learning curve. However, once users get the hang of it, it can become an invaluable tool for centralizing tasks and notes in one place.
Finch
Finch, an app focused on emotional well-being, takes a more playful and supportive approach to self-care. Users are encouraged to care for a virtual pet bird by completing real-life tasks and wellness exercises. Each completed task helps your bird grow and explore new areas, making it a lighthearted way to build healthy habits.
The app includes goal-setting features for mindfulness, hydration and exercise, and urges users to check in with themselves throughout the day. Finch is available on both iOS and Android, with a free version and an optional premium subscription costing $12.99 per month. It is a great choice for those who seek a gentle reminder to prioritize mental health, especially for users who feel overwhelmed by everyday demands.
Habitica
Habiticia takes a similar approach to turning productivity into a game. Users can create avatars, complete tasks to earn rewards and even battle in-game challenges. Available on iOS, Android and through a web browser, Habitica is free to use with optional in-app purchases.
The "gamified" system makes completing everyday tasks more engaging, particularly for individuals who thrive on game-based motivation. It's an ideal app for those who prefer a playful, interactive experience and want a bit of fun injected into their daily routines. While Habitica may not appeal to everyone, it is especially helpful for users who need a boost of motivation to tackle their to-do lists.
Owaves
For those looking to manage both their time and well-being in one place, Owaves offers a visual, circular planner designed to help users allocate time for exercise, mindfulness, sleep and social interactions alongside their work tasks. The app's interface promotes a more balanced approach to productivity by encouraging users to see their day as a holistic routine rather than a never-ending to-do list.
Available for free on iOS and Android with in-app purchases, Owaves is especially useful for individuals seeking a healthy work-life balance. Its colourful interface makes it stand out from traditional planners and helps users schedule time for self-care without feeling guilty about stepping away from their tasks.
Tweek
If you prefer a minimalist, straightforward approach to task management, Tweek might be a better fit. This digital planner organizes tasks into a weekly view, focusing on simplicity and avoiding the complexity that comes with more feature-heavy apps. Tweek is available on iOS, Android and web browsers, offering a free version as well as a premium plan starting at $4.99 per month.
The app's clean, paper-like interface makes it feel as intuitive as jotting tasks down in a notebook while providing the convenience of digital reminders and syncing across devices. Tweek is perfect for individuals who want to keep their productivity system clutter-free and efficient.
It's important for users to try different approaches to managing time, tasks and self-care in order to determine what works best for their unique needs. Whether you prefer customization, a focus on wellness or playful experiences, rest assured there is an app out there fit for you. The key to productivity in 2025 isn't about doing more, it is about working smarter and finding balance, making sure to take care of yourself in the process.
By: Sara Jones
Not only are we back to Mac for a fresh start to another semester, but we've opened new calendars to celebrate the start of 2017. One idea commonly tied to this time of year is that of new year's resolutions. Many have previous personal experiences with resolutions and various preconceptions as a result.
There are some resolutions that are seen as typical, for instance trying a new type of exercise class in DBAC, picking up more fresh fruits from Fortinos or overcoming an undesired habit - for me, chewing pens while writing exams. But resolutions can be thought of simply as ideas that you strive towards for yourself. With this broad definition in mind, resolutions could be about anything at all.
Many seem to follow this trend! While popularity in itself isn’t a reason to adopt or change anything, it may be a reflection of something positive that others have found. There is even evidence of the popularity here at Mac from the Pulse’s data tracking the number of participants in the gym over the months of the year. Even with just a quick glance walking by, the January spike in gym attendance was surprisingly noticeable.
While some might shy away from “trends” popularized by masses of people, having a shared experience with others can be helpful! Working towards a resolution alongside someone with a similar goal could be an opportunity to build a motivating and supportive relationship through the successes and troubles of your new year’s journey.
The idea of the new year as a new beginning and a new opportunity to make healthy changes in one’s life truly resonates with many people. If making new year’s resolutions feels meaningful to you, regardless of their eventual outcome or the skepticism of others, you can make them!
If the popularity of new year’s resolution phenomenon could be considered a “pro” in this debate, the popularity of dropping or having a change of heart about resolutions should be an equally compelling “con”. It somehow seems that the expectation of an unattained new year's resolution is more common than that of a successful one. The presumed low success rate of this mentality is not particularly encouraging, to say the least.
What makes the new year special? Anyone’s body and mind can benefit from healthy changes in your lifestyle or outlook at any time in the year. Not only that, but the focus on this one time of year as the one for change can leave some feeling defeated if they don’t feel that they have accomplished their goal of transformation at the time they desire.
While the popularity of this trend does pique my curiosity and that of many others, it is also easy to see how this could have negative impacts. The pervasiveness of the workout and dieting culture can promote an idea of normalcy around dieting, exercise and striving for body transformation, but those ideas are not for everyone. This can leave some feeling excluded, and what’s worse, it can add to societal pressures to conform to norms about bodies, habits and self-concepts.
The variable pros and cons of the mentality of and culture surrounding new year’s resolutions and the “new year, new me” phrase are considerable. But of course, it is up to each person to decide on what that mentality does or doesn’t mean to them.
Six degrees of separation. The golden standard that shows that as distant as we grow from one another, we will never be more than a half dozen people apart.
I come from a part of the world where nobody is further than two or three degrees apart, and I think it’s an ideal that Canadians can and should aspire towards.
It all starts by reaching out.
Case and point: I probably would not have taken the effort to speak to the dreadlocked 50-something sitting next to me at a pub on New Year’s Eve, but he felt quite the opposite.
What started as an innocent “what are your plans for tonight?” led to an hour-long conversation which felt too surreal to be true. He was a British paratrooper. He runs one of the biggest window-washing companies in all of Toronto. He’s been featured by The Star, talked on air to Rick Mercer, and knows more about preparing turtle meat than anyone else I have met to date. So yeah, you could say he was quite more substantial than my initial impressions may have suggested.
He opened a door that bridged all six gaps in an instant.
But it’s not all about meeting celebrities and seafood connoisseurs. Some people desperately need to be reached out to, and won’t take that first step themselves. The onus falls on those slightly braver few to break down these barriers that our society of strangers has constructed.
A theme we constantly revisit in articles and features is this idea of mental wellness. It’s an unfortunate reality that many students suffer from depression. They are especially depressed in the winter months, such as the one are at the facing now. This is one of the MSU’s priorities, and the university has many services to this very end, but it doesn’t have to be the only solution to an ever-present problem.
An innocuous “hello,” or a casual “how are you” can open a new door for someone looking for a friend or study buddy. The worst that could happen is you get told to sod off, but even that is a connection of sorts.
Expand your horizons. Go speak to people outside of your residence floor or house. Strangers like to keep their distance but one might argue that distance creates strangers.
I implore you to make 2015 the year that six became five.
