Dear Grad Student,

You have two choices.

First choice:

Sit on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, letting the Internet fill up your head because as soon as there is a half-second of room inside, you remember how much you suck, how much you hate school, how much you would rather throw yourself from a bridge than do your work, engage in critical thinking, because you know what? Even if you try really hard, try your best, you will still be miserable-ish and get less-than-perfect grades.

Or.

You can get up, get out of the house, get a strong cup of coffee in your needy little hand, get loud music on your headphones, and do the work. Make the hard decisions, do the hard studying, analyzing, and most importantly, do the hard writing.

It’s going to get done either way.

It’s going to suck either way.

The best you can do is put yourself in the position to get in the groove, and hope the groove will follow your intention.

Sincerely yours,

Past Jessica Who Forgets Things Quickly And Needs Periodic Reminders