Finals suck. Fact. My only saving grace is those glorious teachers who decide to have a final project instead of a final test. Normally people groan when they’re assigned a project, but just listen to some of my tips and you’ll be cheering in no time.

1. NEVER EVER EVER EVER PROCRASTINATE. This is coming from the master procrastinator, and let me tell you how bad of an idea that is. Consider this scenario: it’s 1 a.m. and you’ve been up for about 19 hours. Your backpack is glaring at you from the corner while you play dumb iPhone games instead of writing your final project. It’s due the next morning, yet you haven’t started. Once you see the clock, you burst into tears. Frantic and hysterical writing is trash. Don’t do this to yourself. Do the assignment as early as possible and maybe even turn it in early for extra credit.
2. If you do procrastinate, do it with style. By this I don’t mean shop for nice clothes to wear while not doing your homework. I mean that procrastinate certain things by doing others. Not wanting to study for that math quiz? Start on your english final. Trying not to think about that science lab? Get going on that history essay. Boom. Soon everything but what you dread the most is completed.
3. Just sit down, suck it up and do it. Lock yourself in your room, throw your phone in your sock drawer, turn on some music full blast and crank out that project. For best results, use high doses of caffeine and stress as a motivator.
4. Get some help. I’m not talking psychological help (though some of these finals make me think it’s a good idea), talk to somebody who has taken that class and ask what they did for their final. Don’t copy down what they had, but bounce some ideas off of them to see what that teacher is looking for and narrow down what you want to do.
5. Be as creative as humanly possible. If this project is a PowerPoint, don’t do the white background with no photos. Make it as visually appealing as you can, but don’t forfeit good information to make it look pretty. Put all your info into the slides and then edit it until you want to print it off and frame it.
6. Perhaps most important, keep your cool. If you’re so stressed out that you’re shaking and crying and screaming all at once, just go to bed. No grade is worth a mental breakdown. I promise your life won’t be ruined if you get one bad grade. If it is, look me up in 30 years and come punch me in the face for the bad advice.

So those are my two cents. Good luck and happy finals season!