Thanksgiving break is on the way. To many, five days without classes can look like a lot of things—an opportunity to catch up, to get ahead, or just to rest. It’s tempting to see it as all three.
You’ve worked hard all semester, and you deserve a break. More importantly, a few days off can be important to keeping you from burning out in the home stretch. At the same time, you don’t want to compromise your hard work by falling behind so close to the end.
The situation is made more complicated by the fact that there’s only a week left after break. Some good, solid rest might give you the burst of energy you need to power through the rest of the semester. On the other hand, a few extra days dedicated to getting things done might provide an easy ride through the end of the semester.
So what’s the best way to spend Thanksgiving break?
Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer. You have to find your own equilibrium; a balance between work and rest that will get you through the end of the semester. Take some time to relax and regroup if you can. Take advantage of the opportunity to get things done as well.
Most importantly, don’t expect to work through the entire break and then push yourself right down to the wire—it almost never works the way you plan. Sure, it’s admirable to make that personal sacrifice and get everything done. But it’s just as important, if not more so, to identify your limits; to acknowledge when you can’t do everything and differentiate between the parts that are really important and the ones that can be spared.
