Im Going To Give You The Best Piece Of Adult Life Is Hard Advice Ive Ever Learned:

I’m going to give you the best piece of Adult Life Is Hard advice I’ve ever learned:

Talk to people when things go to shit.

I don’t just mean get it off your chest, although that’s good. I mean: Something’s wrong with your paycheck/you lost your job/you had unexpected emergency car repairs and now you’re broke so your credit card payment is late. Like, not just 15 days late. We’re talking, shit got crazy and now you’re 90 days late with compounded interest and late fees and the Minimum Payment Due is, like, $390, and you’ve got about $3.90 in your bank account. Call the credit card company. 

I know it’s scary. I know you feel like you’re going to get in trouble, like you’re gong to get yelled at or scolded for not having your life together. But the credit card company isn’t your parents; they’re just interested in getting money from you. And you can’t squeeze blood from a stone or money from someone who doesn’t have any. So what you do is you call them. You explain you’re experiencing temporary financial hardships, and you’re currently unable to bring your account up to date, but you don’t want to just let it get worse. Can you maybe talk to someone about a payment plan so you can work something out? Nine times out of ten you’ll be able to negotiate something so that at least it’s not just taking a constant, giant shit on your credit score.

- Can’t pay your power bill? Call the power company.

- Can’t pay your full rent? Talk to your landlord.

- Had to go to the hospital without insurance and have giant medical bills looming in your place? Call the hospital and ask if they have someone who helps people with financial hardships. Many do.

- Got super sick and missed half a semester of class because flu/pneumonia/auto-immune problems/depressive episode? Talk to your professor. If that doesn’t help, talk to your advisor.

You may not be able to fix everything, but you’ll likely be able to make improvements. At the very least, it’s possible that they have a list of people you can contact to help you with things. (Also, don’t be afraid to google things like, “I can’t pay my power bill [state you live in]” because you’d be surprised at what turns up on Google!) But the thing is, people in these positions gain nothing if you fail. There’s no emotional satisfaction for them if your attempts at having your life together completely bite the dust. In fact, they stand to benefit if things work out for you! And chances are, they’ll be completely happy to take $20 a month from you over getting $0 a month from you, your account will be considered current because you’ve talked to them and made an agreement, you won’t get reported to a collections agency, and your credit score won’t completely tank.

Here’s some helpful tips to keep in mind:

1. Be polite. Don’t demand things; request them. Let me tell you about how customer service people hold your life in their hands and how many extra miles they’ll go for someone who is nice to them.

2. Stick to the facts, and keep them minimal unless asked for them. Chances are they’re not really interested in the details. “We had several family emergencies in a row, and now I’m having trouble making the payments” is better than “Well, two months ago my husband wrecked his bike, and then he had a reaction to the muscle relaxer they gave him, and then our dog swallowed a shoestring and we had to take him to the emergency clinic, and just last week MY car broke down, and now my account’s in the negatives and I don’t know how I’m gonna get it back out.” The person you’re talking to is aware shit happens to everyone; they don’t need the details to prove you’re somehow “worthy” of being helped. They may ask you for details at a certain point if they have to fill out any kind of request form, but let them do that.

3. Ask questions. “Is there anything we can do about X?” “Would it be possible to move my payment date to Y day instead so it’s not coming out of the same paycheck as my rent?” The answer may be “no.” That’s not a failure on your part. But a good customer service person may have an alternate solution. 

Anyway! I hope that helps! Don’t just assume the answer is “no” before you’ve even begun. There is more help out there than you ever imagined.

random college tips

i. get to your classroom early if you don’t have a class beforehand

not only are you guaranteed the best seat in the house, but there’s something about being in a classroom or lecture hall that makes you feel productive and focused. bring a book or writing assignment for a different class with you and just Do It

ii. pack your bag the night before

especially if you have early morning classes and are not a morning person. this will help you have a less stressful morning and will help you make sure you have everything you need for the day prior to leaving your dorm

iii. don’t overannotate

annotations are designed to help you identify the most important parts of the book/novel, meaning important themes, character development, big events, the implications of said events, etc. by over highlighting and over annotating i can guarantee you you aren’t doing yourself a favor !!! i’m gonna make a post later about how i annotate so be on the lookout

iv. stay on top of your readings

seriously. it is a pain in the ass trying to catch up on a week’s worth of reading in five different classes. it is stressful, it’s time consuming, and it’s exhausting. even if you’ve had a long day and you’re not in the mood to read an entire 20 page chapter in your american government textbook, just do it !!! your brain and your mental health will thank you the next day

v. try your hardest not to miss class

i’m mentally ill and prone to sickness, so i understand that sometimes it’s hard. it also feels worse when you miss class and have no idea what’s happening, so if you think you can get out of bed, lets get to class so we don’t fall behind and get extra stress thrown on top of us!

vi. fridays are homework days

think of it this way: if fridays are homework days, saturday and sunday are free days !!!!

vii. proofread your papers before you turn them in

guys i literally never do this (i know i’m a bad egg) and im always suffering for it. if your college/university has a writing center/something similar please go there, especially your freshman year !!! they will help you learn how to accurately and succinctly convey your thoughts on a college level and you will be so grateful later on i hate myself

viii. ask if the professor prefers a certain citation style

if you dont get a chance to ask during the class/lecture, send them an email. i once got my grade halved because i didnt use APA when the professor didnt specify on the syllabus/assignment sheet. so do urself and ur gpa a favor and ask

ix. always bring extra pens/pencils to class with you

somebody will forget theirs and they will sit next to you and if ur in a class with 30+ ppl that has group projects or presentations coming up you’re going to want friends

x. college kids love gum

if u bring gum you got all the friends in the world my guy i dont know why this is a thing but it is. one girl cried during exam week last year because i gave her a piece of my gum and that was literally the highlight of her week

ok thats my random ass list of stuff regarding college !! i’ll probably make more masterposts like this b/c this was fun as heck. if u have any questions/need advice, just hmu !! you can check out my other masterposts here.

quick tips to just get started when you’re struggling

break down goals further and further into easily achievable tasks/steps

visualize your end goal

visualize all of the steps

tell yourself you’ll just do the first part of the task/work for five minutes (and then see if that momentum carries yourself forward)

ask a friend for encouragement

close all of your tabs/apps, close your laptop, and start over

change your physical environment (go somewhere else, even if it’s just a different room)

picture a goal and then set a short count-down timer. try to complete the goal before the timer runs out

picture a reward – could be the reward of that good feeling that comes with completing something, or it could be a piece of candy, etc

come up with the first step (should be very easy, like “stand up”) and then count backwards from 5. you should be doing that by the time you reach 0.

make a schedule even if you have no intention of following it.

if you don’t want to do the first task you have to do, just start in the middle with something you feel capable of doing

note-taking methods

guide to 4 main note-taking methods

cornell notes

outline method

how to mind map

how to use flashcards

how to use flashcards #2

cause and effect diagrams

summary foldables

double column method

revision notes 

make your own revision textbook

how to take notes from a textbook

how to take notes for different subjects

in-class note-taking

taking notes in class

taking notes in class #2

note-taking during and after class

digital notes

ipad note-taking 

onenote note-taking

onenote note-taking #2

making notes pretty

colour-coding notes

easy ways to make pretty notes 

guide to aesthetically pleasing notes

upgrading your notes 

helpful tags (for inspiration)

all notes

digital notes

flashcards

mind maps

printables

more posts:

apps for your mental health

aliexpress stationery

four types of learners

staying productive during holidays

maths masterpost

bullet journal spread themes

what’s in my bag

Cookbooks

A NYC grad student working on food stamps for her thesis has released a free cookbook for those living on $4/day.