Do These 5 Things Before Summer Ends

Summer is one of those seasons that we learn from a young age to look forward to. The skies get clearer, the weather gets warmer, there’s no school, trips to the pool are a must, and you just feel like you have all the time in the world. Until you hit high school.

From my junior year of high school and onwards, my summers were filled with relaxation but with a healthy dose of stress. Stress of wondering if I was doing enough to stand out in my college/internship/job applications and stress of not being able to find something to do. But now that I’m in my first summer post-grad (yes it is still weird that I don’t have to go back to school in September), I wanted to write a list of the 5 things you should do before this summer ends.

1) SET ASIDE A DAY FOR YOU

Try to set aside an entire 24 hours dedicated to you. Here’s your time to prioritize things that are going to be beneficial for your mental health and self-care. Sometimes we are so focused on our time spent with others that we forget to stop and allow ourselves to breathe. One of my favorite (quite cliche) quotes is-

You can’t pour from an empty cup.

After all, if you aren’t taking care of yourself and only recharging in short spurts, you’ll eventually burnout. A couple of things I like to do on these days is to journal, read, watch a movie, bake some banana bread (get the recipe for my vegan & healthy banana bread), or even try a new workout class*!

*I’ve actually been loving pilates lately but would also recommend trying out Rumble or Barry’s Bootcamp if you’re on the hunt for a new one to try

💫other ideas
• Go to a coffee shop and people watch, draw, or journal
• Literally sit and watch Netflix all day
• Put on a face mask, paint your nails, and listen to a podcast (need recommendations? here are my current favorites)

2) MAKE PLANS WITH YOUR FRIENDS ASAP

One of the hardest things about going to college was that my friends and I would be hours away from each other. During college, our holidays and breaks were one of the only times that we would all be able to see each other again. Now, this first summer after graduation has been so crucial in maintaining both my high school and college friendships. With school came the promise of being able to see a friend after three months, but now that we’re all graduated, we’ll all be heading off to different places and it’ll be 10x harder to meet up.

So I’ll say it again- make plans with your friends now!!! Whether you’re going back to the same school/location or not, summer is the perfect time to make carefree plans before everyone gets all stressed again :~)

3) CHECK ONE THING OFF YOUR SUMMER BUCKET LIST

Didn’t write one? Make one right now- go!

I used to make Summer Bucket Lists all the time just because it was fun to do and it made me feel like I had a mini purpose for the next couple of months. It can be something as small as “visit that new cafe” to as large as “plan a road trip with my friends”. 

📝other ideas
• Go on a hike
• Do a day trip somewhere nearby
• Throw a sleepover
• Watch the sunrise

4) PICK UP THAT ONE BOOK YOU SAID YOU'D READ (but never did)

You and I both know that there’s that one book that we said we would read this summer. I never read as much as I want to (I used to read over 110 books a year before I entered college), so with the end of summer approaching, I’m making it a goal of mine to finish at least 3 more books before September. Do you have any book recommendations? Comment them below so I can add them to my list!

Feel free to follow me on Goodreads to see what I’ve been reading and my 2019 reading challenge!

📚a few of my favorite books

• Bright Side by Kim Holden
• The Sun is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon
• The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand
• #GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso
• Yes Please by Amy Poehler

5) START YOUR PASSION PROJECT

I remember I used to place a lot of pressure on myself to get a summer internship between school years so that I could remain competitive in the job market. It’s clearly something that’s really important and valuable to employers, but it’s also important to remember that you can show your value in other ways as well. Every time I would stress-rant to my friend Mindy about this, she would say the same thing each time.

You should just start a passion project. 

I KNOW I know, it’s so vague that I would literally respond, “but what does that even meeaaaaaaaaannnnn”, every time. After 4+ years of her telling me this, I think I finally figured it out.

Starting a passion project doesn’t mean it has to be something you’re super passionate about. But think of it as a time where you can start and try anything you want! For example, photography has been a big part of my life ever since I was young, and while I’m frequently in front of the camera, I enjoy being behind the camera and doing the creative direction a lot too (sometimes I wish I could clone myself so I can do it all). I have always considered doing photography as a side business but never went through with creating the rates sheet, making the Instagram page, the website, etc. But when I graduated early, I finally decided to do it because I was starting to get annoyed at how much time I was wasting thinking about it rather than doing it.

I ended up doing around 18 photoshoots within 4 weeks (tip: do not do this) which was such a surreal moment for me! Feel free to take a look at my work and follow my Instagram page. But it was a project that I loved starting and I learned so much from it. Don't put pressure on yourself to start and complete an entire project before summer ends, but taking those first couple of steps is an accomplishment too!

Now that you know more about what I mean when I say “passion project”, what first came to your mind? Do that thing.

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Those are my top 5 things that I know I’ll be doing before summer ends. I hope this list helped you out in making the most of the rest of summer! Comment below what you’ll be doing to soak in the last couple of weeks ☀️

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