Staying Motivated Throughout Your Major

Dixon Gerber

McKay Student Ambassador

Elementary Education

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After attending BYU for almost 5 school years, I still have one more year left before earning a Bachelor's degree. While I have changed my major at least once, I have had many occasions where I just don't want to keep going to school. There have been plenty of occasions where I've thought about dropping out and trying to start a career in one thing or another. However, I have been able to stay motivated and inspired as I continue to work to get my degree. Here are a few tips to stay motivated and inspired and avoid burnout through your educational journey:

Take Fun Classes or Join a Club:

Most of my burnout happened when I took only major required classes. It was a lot of work, and I frequently found myself completely drained emotionally, physically, and mentally. This semester, I'm taking a songwriting class. It isn't part of my major, and it is a fun class for me. I have found myself less stressed, happier, and more motivated to keep pushing on. I have found my mental health improve and my grades are better this semester than they have been for a long time.

Depending on what you enjoy doing in your free time, there are plenty of courses you can take to avoid burnout and enjoy your semester a little bit more. For musicians and music lovers, you can take an intro to guitar or piano class. You could join one of the university choirs as well. If you enjoy sports, you could take a variety of SWELL classes like martial arts or pickleball.

Club night is on Tuesday nights. There's a variety of clubs to join from an a capella club to fencing and swing dance. There's a chess club and a ping pong club. If you find that you have free time on a Tuesday night, you can go once or twice or many times. It's up to you, and your schedule. You could join an intramural team as well. Sports range from pickleball to flag football. Games are typically Tuesday-Friday nights. They will be about an hour long between 6 and 10 pm. There might be occasional Saturday morning games as well. These are good opportunities to spend time with friends and get some good exercise! Plus, you could win a championship shirt. I won two championship shirts in Ultimate Frisbee before joining the BYU team.

Staying Organized:

One of the best ways to avoid burnout and stay motivated is to stay organized. I have found that when I am organized, I'm a lot less tempted to give up when life gets difficult. Life will throw wrenches in our plans frequently. However, when we are organized, we have a lot less to worry about. We know when things are due, where things are, and what we have going on. This helps you be able to focus and accomplish tasks ahead of you. Personally, I have a list of school assignments, which class they're for, and when they're due. This organization helps me to have all of the information in one place so I don't worry about whether or not I have assignments due. I know when everything is due, and it allows me to work ahead, to further reduce stress and help me enjoy life.

The Clichés

Everything here will be the typical things you hear to stay motivated, but they are still true. Remember your why. Why did you want to be an educator? This refocusing on your why will help you focus on what you value. For me, remembering the students that I will be able to influence and change their lives is motivation to keep going.

Set goals and reward yourself. Taking it one step at a time will help you get through the toughest times. Setting goals helps you have a focus and a target to reach. When you reach check points you make for yourself, it's ok to reward yourself. It could be going to a movie, getting a new pair of shoes, or eating your favorite treat. You can stay motivated through goals and rewards.

Positive self talk. Often times, burnout starts when we stop telling ourselves we can do it. We start to doubt and we want to quit. To combat this, we can employ positive self talk to remind ourselves that we can accomplish our goals and dreams. We can tell ourselves that we are good enough, we can stay motivated throughout our education and lives.

Conclusion

Staying motivated through your major can be difficult. Through taking time to do what you enjoy doing, you can find joy in what you do, helping you stay motivated throughout your education. Whether it's through taking a fun class or joining a club or intramural team, staying organized, or doing the little every day things, you can find motivation to endure to the end.

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