Academic Strategies for the Health Academic Strategies for the Health Care ProfessionCare Profession

Rebecca WilsonE-mail: Rwilson@Kaplan.edu

AIM: RWilson77prplOffice Hours: Sunday, 9:00-11:00pm EST

AgendaAgenda

• Unit 6 preview• Review 5• Stress• Being Proactive• Personal Management

• Unit 6 Assignments• Looking Ahead• Questions

Welcome to Unit 6Welcome to Unit 6Personal ManagementPersonal Management

Personal ManagementPersonal ManagementTo realize the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade.

To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a premature baby.

To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of ONE HOUR, ask two lovers who are waiting to meet.

To realize the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed the plane.

To realize the value of ONE-SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an accident.

To realize the value of ONE MILLISECOND, ask the person who won a silver medal in the Olympics.

Treasure every moment that you have. And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time.

And remember that time waits for no one. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery.

Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present.

Unit 6 AssignmentsUnit 6 AssignmentsDiscussion Board QuestionsReadings

Assessments:Live Well

• http://wellness.uwsp.edu/other/livewell/

Life Scan • http://wellness.uwsp.edu/other/lifescan/

lifescan.asp

Stress Assess • http://wellness.uwsp.edu/other/stress/

• Seminar 1 or 2

• Mini-Project (Stress Management Plan)

Unit 6: Personal ManagementUnit 6: Personal Management

Personal management involves learning effective coping techniques to manage the stress

in your life. In the last unit, you learned time management skills.

Using stress management techniques along with time management will help you learn how to plan, organize, and prioritize your daily activities to make the most out of your study time and at the same time

keeping your stress manageable.

Questions from Unit 5Questions from Unit 5

One of the important connections from lastweek’s reading material is the connectionbetween setting goals and knowing your particular learning style and how these will

help you to manage your time.

Any questions about time management?

Any questions about anything so far?

Alarming Statistics about Stress…Alarming Statistics about Stress…

Women and Stress* Women are twice as likely to experience depression as men

* Approximately 7 million women in the United States are clinically depressed

* One in five women can expect to develop clinical depression at some time in her life

* Depression is the leading cause of disability in women

* Only one of every three depressed women will seek professional help

*Almost 15 percent of women suffering from severe depression will commit suicide

“Depression Statistics and Fact Information.” http://www.add-adhd-help-center.com/Depression/statistics.htm

Men and Stress* Though women experience depression at double the rate of men, men are three times as likely to commit suicide than women

* Suicide is most common among men who are separated, widowed, divorced

* One in seven men will develop depression within 6 months of becoming unemployed

* Retired men are also at an increased risk for depression

* Men recently diagnosed with depression are at double the risk of cardiovascular problems in the next five years

“Depression Statistics and Fact Information.” http://www.add-adhd-help-center.com/Depression/statistics.htm

Alarming Statistics about Stress…

What it means to be proactive?

What it means to be proactive.What it means to be proactive.

Being proactive means taking conscious control

over your life, setting goals and working to achieve them. Instead of reacting to events

and waiting for opportunities, you go out and create your own events and opportunities.

Being proactive means that instead of merely reacting to events as they happen, you consciously engineer your own events.

How can students be proactive in college?

Be proactive in college!Most people think reactively. And reacting

to certain events is all well and good. But it becomes a problem when that’s all there is to a person’s life — nothing more than instinctively reacting to stimuli.

Steve Covey points out that there’s a gap between stimulus and response, and within that gap lies the potential for us to choose our response. Four special human endowments give us this power:

Self-AwarenessSelf-Awareness

The understanding that you do have a choice between stimulus and response.

If someone insults you, you can choose not to become angry.

If you are offered a donut, you can choose not to eat it.

ConscienceConscience

The ability to consult your inner compass to decide what is right for you. You can make decisions based on unchanging principles, regardless of what is socially favored at the moment.

Creative ImaginationCreative Imagination

The ability to visualize alternative responses. By using your imagination, you can mentally generate and evaluate different options.

Independent WillIndependent Will

You have the freedom to choose your own unique response. You aren’t forced to conform to what others expect from you.

How can being proactive in college alleviate stress?

Alleviate StressAlleviate StressProactive people are aware of their core values. They consciously make key decisions based on those values. They create their own opportunities and direct the flow of their own lives. Even when things are pretty good, they’re still making conscious choices. Sometimes that means maintaining the status quo, while other times it means changing directions. Sometimes their values will align well with what’s socially popular; other times they won’t. Proactive people will take actions that often seem mysterious to reactive people. They may suddenly quit their job to start a new business, even though everything seemed to be going well for them. They’ll often start new projects or activities “out of the blue” when it seems like there’s no externally motivated reason to do so. A proactive person will still pay attention to external events, but they’ll pilot themselves to their desired destination regardless of those events.

Taken from: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2004/11/be-proactive/

Stretch...

If you want to actually succeed in college If you want to actually succeed in college and come out having learned something in and come out having learned something in

the end, then keep reading.the end, then keep reading.

SleepSleepHonestly, how much sleep do you get a night?

Getting enough sleep (and going to sleep at the same time each night) is probably the single most important thing you can do for yourself.

It’s fine to stay up late every once in a while when you go out, but if your sleeping habits aren’t mostly normal and regular, it can really mess you up. If you want to feel awake without having to get a coffee after every class (which ends up being more expensive than you’d think), then you need a sleep schedule. Even if all you get is five hours a night, go to sleep at the same time every single day. Your body will get used to not getting much rest (although it’s still not great for you), but if you constantly change the time when you’re getting that rest, your body won’t ever know what’s going on and you’ll feel worse than getting no rest at all. Sometimes pulling an all-nighter is better than the two or three hours of sleep you might get at random hours of the day.

CalendarCalendarBefore the semester starts, head down to the local office supply store (or the school bookstore) and

buy a weekly scheduler. When you go to class, make sure

you write down every problem set, quiz, oral report, project and test into your schedule. Take the time to copy over

all the information from each class syllabus (like reading assignments) too. That way, even if you end up not

going to class, you’ll know what you missed and you won’t

feel like you’re falling too far behind.

How many of you have implemented a calendar or some type of written

schedule?

NotesNotes

Take your laptop with you, or else buy a notebook for each class, and TAKE NOTES.

Many professors pull questions for their tests from their lectures, so if you sleep through your classes and only read the textbook, you could end up in serious trouble on your finals.

Taking notes, especially when you’re tired, is also a great way to keep yourself awake. If you don’t write very fast, or if you have a problem listening and writing at the same time, think about getting a mini recorder. Then you can spend class time listening and you can take notes later.

Make a note of the people who participate a lot in Seminar and look like they know their stuff…. Then if you miss class, they’re going to be the best people to go to for notes from the days you missed.

GoalsGoals

Coming up with both long-term and short-term goals will not only help you get more work done, it’ll help you to feel more focused. For short-term goals, you’ll want to make compromises with yourself. You might really want to watch season première of The Office, but that term

paper is due tomorrow morning. If you have a clear goal that you need to finish that paper, then you’ll realize that TV might be a little less important. (And besides, you can always download the episode later.) For long-term goals, try to be both realistic and flexible. Setting goals that you know you won’t be able to accomplish will never help you.

StudyingStudyingBefore you start studying, you need to figure out your

learning style. Do a little research online to determine if you learn visually, kinesthetically or aurally. If you’re a visual or aural learner, focus more on paying attention in class than taking notes; a mini recorder can help. If you're kinesthetic, take a lot of notes.

Knowing your ideal way of learning will also help you when you’re preparing for your tests. If you understand how you learn, you’ll know if flash cards or audio books will be better for memorization. Also make sure you have a regular time and quiet place for studying every day. Try not to study in front of your computer—too many ways to get distracted.

What was your learning style? And what tips did you learn to help yourself study?

Listening to music isn't always a good idea, either; it can interfere with your concentration. If you absolutely have to listen to music, put on some classical Mozart. 

ProcrastinationProcrastination

For some people, procrastination actually helps them get stuff done because they have the pressure of a deadline to meet.Procrastination typically only works well for short essays or math homework. If you have something that actually takes a lot of time to research or put together (like a science project, a term paper or a midterm), then you'll want to make sure you have plenty of time to do it. Who admits having a procrastination problem? How will you work to decrease

your procrastination?

SocializingSocializingBeing social is the key to success. No matter which road you take in life, you'll always need to interact with others. Don't put off taking that public speaking class you need for general education until your last semester, especially if you're shy. Once you’re able to talk easily to others, you’ll feel less lost in the sea of people on campus. Practice on people in your classes; introduce yourself and say you don't know very many people. Or if you want a better excuse, ask if they have notes you can borrow or photocopy. In between classes, make eye contact with others on the quad and smile at them. If someone smiles back, that might be an opening for a conversation. For online learners—try AIM or emailing classmates.

Life is all about acceptance and learning. With the Life is all about acceptance and learning. With the right attitude and the proper outlook, college can right attitude and the proper outlook, college can turn out to be some of the best years of your life. In turn out to be some of the best years of your life. In the end, as long as you stay on top of things, the end, as long as you stay on top of things, there's no reason you can't be both social there's no reason you can't be both social andand do do well in school; because after college, you'll need well in school; because after college, you'll need both skill and charisma to be able to succeed.both skill and charisma to be able to succeed.

  

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Unit 6 Discussion BoardUnit 6 Discussion Board

Is Stress Management one of your strengths or limitations? What types of stress do you have in your life right now? What can you do to alleviate stress in your life?

Post to 2 classmates: Give some suggestions to your classmates on how they can more effectively handle their stress. See the additional resources for ideas.

 

Unit 6 Mini ProjectUnit 6 Mini ProjectCreate a Stress Management PlanCreate a Stress Management Plan

For this week's mini project, you will use the template found in the Unit 6 Project button to create a stress management plan for yourself.

Create stress management plan(Write in complete sentences) 

List 3 current sources of Stress (be specific). These can be school, family, personal, or work related.

• •  •  •  

List 3 sources of Support in your life. These are people that you can rely on to help you. • •  •  

For each source of stress, list 3 things that you can do differently (think about being proactive) in order to alleviate some of that stress.

Stressor 1: • • •  

Stressor 2: • • •  

Stressor 3: • •

Questions?Questions?