Test Anxiety Lunch ‘n Learn

Test anxiety can induce a fight or flight response. You can actually have a physical reaction to this kind of stress including sweating, headaches, and going temporarily “blank” before or during a test. It’s a normal reaction many people have. It’s also something that can be subdued or eliminated. This was what I learned during October’s Lunch ‘n Learn at MPTC in West Bend.

Although I don’t really take traditional tests in my classes, there are times when my performance is evaluated by projects I create and presentations I give in class. I find the best way to combat anxiety is to be prepared. During the Lunch ‘n Learn I learned a few other ways to beat anxiety.

Before the test:
- Eat nutritious food, not soda, energy drinks, and junk food
- Prepare by studying early and taking practice tests
- Take breaks while studying so you don’t get burnt out
- Exercise by going for a walk, jogging, or Yoga
- Get sleep because your brain functions much better when you’re not tired
- Practice stress management techniques like breathing

Get Organized: September Lunch ‘n Learn

What’s one thing just about everybody, especially college students, wishes they could be better at? It’s a skill useful in your work life as well as your personal life. If you’re good at it not only can it save you time, it can make your life easier.

The answer is, getting organized. Sometimes we need to figure out how to organize our things, and sometimes we need to figure out how to organize our time better. At September’s Lunch ‘n Learn we shared tips and discussed the struggles we face trying to organize things in our life. It seems like everybody wants to know how to be more organized.

I’ve tried to implement some organizational rules in a few rooms in my home to keep my things in order:

1. Objects must serve a purpose. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a functional thing. If it’s something very sentiment or beautiful, it has a purpose. If it’s something you don’t use and don’t like, don’t keep it.
2. Everything needs a designated place. It should go in a certain container, drawer, or cupboard. Label those areas if it helps.
3. The location of things needs to be logical. For example, I keep my hairbrush in the same spot in a drawer in my bathroom. I’ve used an overturned shoebox cover as a divider so my hairbrush is separated from everything else in the drawer. I don’t want to have to dig to find my brush, especially if I need to be somewhere at 8 a.m.