Published: March 25, 2021
Creative Industries week at the University allows students to take part in a wide number of talks & workshops relating to the Arts and Creative Industries faculty.
09:00 – I’m not a morning person. I said it, it’s out there. I’ve never been a morning person, and I don’t think I ever will be. 2020 has been a nightmare for everyone, but I feel like for myself and my fellow early starters, the struggle is REAL. Especially on weeks like this one (it’s creative industries week at the university so no classes this week). When lockdown first began, I was working from home and had a reason to be up and at my desk by 9am, but now that I’m back as a student there isn’t that urgency to be up and about as early, and my lazy morning self has been taking a little bit too much of an advantage recently. So, this morning, I thought sod it, I’m setting my alarm and I’m seizing the day! Until my alarm went off and I hit snooze. Whoops…
10:00 – I actually got myself into gear and dragged myself from my happy place to start the day. Of course, coffee is first on the agenda. My husband is working from home from the kitchen, so it was a case of a stealth mission to the fridge and back for a cheeky little iced coffee. I set myself up at my own desk in the glamorous surroundings of our spare room, flicked on my PC and checked my emails.
10:30 – I had an email from the founder of the charity I volunteer with – the Red Sky Foundation, asking me to glance over a press release for a story about a newly funded defibrillator. After checking over that and sending over my feedback, I sent a quick mail over to my industry mentor Ashleigh (post incoming about my experience with having a mentor soon) to discuss some topics for our upcoming meeting and a quick chat about Netflix suggestions. Shout out to Ashleigh for suggesting I check out The Queens Gambit, brilliant show.
11:30 – Emails done, it was time to plan out some content that I wanted to produce this week. I’ve slacked a little bit the last couple of weeks due to an astronomical amount of work to get done for my MA, but as this week is ‘technically’ a week off, I’ve had a little bit of time to get some additional bits done here and there.
12:00 – Creative Industries week at the University allows students to take part in a wide number of talks & workshops relating to the Arts and Creative Industries faculty. Today, we were very lucky to have a ‘Meet the PR Practitioners’ workshop featuring a number of past students. Absolutely loved hearing about their experiences in the industry and the different ways they all got to be where they are today. Felt very inspired to make a few connections this week and reach out to some local business.
14:00 – Riding that feeling of inspiration, I made a start with some of the content I mapped out in the morning, beginning with writing this post!
14:01 – Forgot that today was the release day for the new Assassins Creed Valhalla game. Made a quick detour to the living room to make a start on downloading the game for later (potential post looking at the campaign for the game coming soon).
15:00 – Took a break and nabbed a quick snack from the kitchen while my husband was on a work break. Must remember to fetch snacks earlier in the day.
15:15 – After completing two assignments earlier than expected (unheard of from me, who is this new organized queen?), I wanted to begin to plan out my third. I have a sizeable campaign to produce and present just after the new year, so I wanted to get all other assignments out of the way as early as possible so I can focus as much of my energy as I can on the campaign.
17:00 – after drafting out a plan for my assignment and doing some academic and campaign research, I decided to call it a day. It’s dinner time!
18:00 – Cooking isn’t my favorite activity, it has to be said, but I recently was given an Air Fryer as an early Christmas present and, sad as it may be, I was super excited to use it! I couldn’t help but rustle up some roasties to go with our tea and wow – how I have lived my life without an air fryer so far is beyond me. Absolutely 10/10 (even if I say so myself).
18:30 – finally settled down to begin my epic Viking adventure. I have to admit, I wasn’t a huge gamer growing up, but thanks to my husband I now have a keen interest in games, although by no means think I’m any good!
21:00 – adventure over for the day, it’s time for a bath, a bit of reading and bed for an attempt at an early night and another relatively early start tomorrow.
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Life is strange at the moment; I think we can all agree on that. So I’m a big advocate for doing what feels good, what brings you the most comfort. However, for me that would mean being holed up under my duvet all day, sipping a nice warm cuppa coffee and ignoring any and all adult responsibilities. Unfortunately, that just isn’t how reality works, so I’m trying little things every day to make sure I’m as productive as I can be, without burning myself out.
Master’s degrees are hard, and the work load is in all honesty a lot more intense than I expected so I can see how easy it could be to drown amongst all of that. I know that little wins make a big difference though, so allowing myself a nice guilt free chunk of time on an evening to play games, read a book, have a bath, eat some roasties, whatever it may be is fair reward for keeping on top of my studies.
What little wins have you had so far this week? What things do you enjoy as a reward for your wins? Let me know in the comments below.
Stay safe, until next time.
Rachael Thompson
MA PR
Topic: Course