Sunny Days and Sundresses, and Tips to Not Overwhelm Yourself

Happy Monday!

I honestly can't believe its the end of July! This month was a whirlwind with moving, travel, winding down with experiments, rediscovering my motivation, lessening stress, and getting things done from my to-do list. And also, my moving-across-the-country-again is quickly approaching, and its a bit terrifying. I'm trying to soak up the sunny days and good weather before I head east to the winter.

On the weekends I have started wearing more and more of my sun dresses, of course with a floral print, to run errands, get brunch with friends, hang out at the beach, or even to go out at night. I really like white as it is a chill summer color, and the details of this dress are just so pretty! I really liked the details of this dress from SheIn, and it was so comfortable - this Floral Print Drawstring elastic Waist Cami Dress comes in just one size, and it fits perfectly! The drawstring detail in the back with two little pearls was also just darling! Also was a great price, definitely fits into my budget right now, and totally affordable for grad students or anyone on a budget.

Here are some of my tips for getting things done in the lab/grad school/work and not get overwhelmed:

1. Make a Brain Dump list - Brain dump EVERYTHING you have to do. Just write everything thats on your mind in a list, anything that you are worrying or stressing about forgetting - and then organize those things into things that can be accomplished in the long term (as in a few weeks or months), shorter term (this week), and present (can be done today).
2. Break down larger goals/to-do list things into smaller pieces - You have a huge experiment to do and its stressing you the F out! How do you get over the overwhelming feeling? Write down the smaller steps that need to get done to accomplish the whole experiment. Can you finish the first part today? Can you get the planning and buffers done today and tomorrow, and then plan for the next part the day after?  Breaking down into smaller tasks makes new and big experiments that much easier to deal with.

3. Take frequent breaks - Work for an hour, take a 10 minute break, then continue. I've been giving myself small focused time blocks - get my planning and calculations done in 25 minutes, then I can scroll on instagram as a reward for 10 minutes, then get back to work. There are a few apps on your phone that can force you to stay off of it by growing a tree (lol!), and its really helped me stay focused. Giving yourself treats like permission to go on social media, or my favorite is getting a coffee - is a good way to get focused!

4. Don't guilt yourself - Even though I finished my PhD, I still get the grad student guilt. When I'm not getting my work done fast enough I tend to guilt myself, why aren't I pushing harder to get it all done? Just remember - it WILL get done in time, it just doesn't all have to happen at once and right now.

Dress: Floral Print Drawstring elastic Waist Cami Dress | Shoes: Thrifted | Earrings: Forever 21

5. Dress up - wear cute clothes (lab appropriate of course), feel confident in yourself, it helps your mood, and it helps your confidence - and you get things done! I would style this in the lab by wearing leggings and closed toed shoes.... and then remove those when I leave the lab!

What do you think about this dress? Do you wear your sun dresses on the weekends like I do? I could totally wear it to the lab but prefer comfort when I'm running around the lab all day.

What other styles of sundresses do you like to wear?

Do you have any other tips for not getting overwhelmed?

xo

Andrea