We all know that a change in perspective can be beneficial in many scenarios, as it’s always good to see things from a different angle. But can reevaluating one’s perspective be especially useful when your motivation and productivity is running low?

We are at the point in the school year where workloads are stacking up and motivation is plummeting, but how can we re-inspire motivation and productivity? Perhaps adjusting your perspective can increase productivity and motivation and help you to stay on the grind through the hardest parts of the semester. 

Five days out of the week, students come to school for hours a day. They go to ninety minute long classes that are filled with lectures and assignments on assignments. It’s natural and easy to get caught up in the deadlines stacking up and the piles of unfinished work. We’re also highly susceptible to the distraction of phones, friends and other activities. When it’s a choice between any of these diversions and schoolwork, many students will choose to postpone their schoolwork away and have fun. While school work often feels like a chore that’s easier to ignore, eventually this strategy will come back to bite you in the end. Instead, change your perspective on the school work.

No one enjoys spending hours everyday on school work, but if you make a simple adjustment in your mindset from the amount of work to what it’ll help you accomplish,  can allow you to be more productive. 

The new year is a great time to set goals and intentions for the year. For 2024, you can keep productivity in mind when setting these goals. Of course, it’s important to not expect too much of yourself when setting goals. A perspective change can be the very thing that will allow goals to become more attainable and productive. There are 366 days in 2024 and changing your mindset from having to achieve everything you want right away to a mindset that allows you to gradually work towards these goals over the year, can allow them to become more implemented in your life. 

It’s only natural to become stressed with the semester ending and finals approaching, but sometimes it’s important to take a step back. Take a step back from the never ending to-do lists in order to find a new way to look at homework and studying. The more time spent viewing goals and work as chores, the more you will procrastinate them. Try working one task at a time as opposed to thinking about the other tasks you have to complete. When starting to lose focus completing a certain task, take a break and move onto a different assignment. Soon enough, you might find that if you stop looking at assignments as chores, your procrastination will decrease and your productivity will increase. 

By Maggie McMillen

Editor’s Note for Perspectives Magazine

The Axe staff has worked hard this year to put together the spring magazine, and we are all so excited for you to be reading it. Following the theme Perspectives, we have explored many different angles of many different subjects.

A magazine allows for so much more depth with a story, and it was amazing to dive into this different style of writing. From longer articles to interesting visuals to a really big crossword, there is something for everyone in here.

A magazine also takes a lot of time, and requires hard work on many fronts. With articles, visuals, editing, layouts – a lot of time has been put into making Perspectives.

Hopefully, this magazine allows you to explore perspectives you may not have come across before.

Happy reading!

Aria Lynn-Skov

Full magazine PDF here: