Instead of winter break being filled with laughs, family time, and holiday excitement, it is usually filled with sleep, sleep and more sleep due to the fatigue of finals. This break, you can do more!

Rest, sparingly. Of course you need your rest, every student does after a trying semester. But there are more things to do this break than sleep! So after about a week of laying in bed, try out something new. Stop the cycle of drinking one hot cocoa after another and keep your brain refreshed. Rest is important, and after a tense semester it may feel like it’s the only thing you need, but trust that there are more things to do than laying in bed, and stuffing your face while watching cruddy Christmas movies on Netflix.

Work. After you’ve binged your life away in the span of a week, you’re probably getting the itch to create something, like you’ve been doing for the past 3 months for classes. Set a goal for a project or a piece of work that can be done by the end of break. Make a short film, draw an animation, choreograph a piece, there are endless possibilities in your creativeness. There are tons of jolly inspirations with all of the holidays passing us by, so make use of it! Even if you don’t celebrate some, there’s nothing wrong with being inspired by them.

Go Outside. This may seem like a stretch but here this out. Outside does not mean to strictly be out in nature, in this sense it means to widen your horizons, engage in new activities, and meet new people. There are events held all the time for certain fan groups, clubs, and people with similar interests in general. Scope ‘em out once in a while. Take an month-long intensive class for your medium and meet some people who love the same things you do! Spend more time with your family by doing silly quizzes and games with them that you see in social media. It’s worth looking into to spice up your family time, and get over the awkward talk about grades and where you’ll be going in life. I know, you’re probably shuddering just thinking about that. Yikes.

Anything that will get you from under the covers this break may seem iffy, but think about it like this: would you rather have watched Netflix shows for 5 weeks, or done something beneficial to you and productive? Would you rather have gained 10 pounds by eating entire house’s food stock out of boredom, or actually start that new *free* Nike workout program that you’ve been meaning to start for 3 weeks. Just do something and make the most of your time, both during and out of the semester!