Coping with stress during the holidays looks a little different than my everyday strategies. This is mostly because I am back living with my family over this time rather than in student accomodation. On one hand, being around my family is a stress reliever and on the other it's a stressor in itself, which I think is only natural. Its difficult for me to be out of my regular routine. So, as self-care, I've been trying to stick to a routine as much as possible. Waking up/going to sleep at the same time, going for walks, making nourishing home-cooked meals.  But most of all I've been trying to not feel pressure to be productive 24/7 after all this is the time when we should all have a chance to RELAX (no guilt attached!)   holiday self care ideas: -night drives (xmas light looking) -hot chocolates (extra marshmallows ofc) -comforting childhood movies -reconnecting with old friends (can you tell i'm extra nostalgic in the holidays)   take care everyone x ... View more

Hey! I completely understand what you're going through. You're not alone. It's amazing that you're able to acknowledge these feelings to reach out for some advice. Firstly, I want to say, that these have been such unpredictable times, you're allowed to feel sad and let yourself cry, even if it feels unexpected. So much of our lives are unexpected at the moment, your feelings will reflect this and that's okay. Maybe something you could try is doing some online classes? I know that they help me to feel accomplished when I finish them as if I've really helped myself to learn a new skill. They build my confidence by knowing that we are more capable than we give ourselves credit for! LinkedIn Learning has so many! They're short (a couple of hours), can be done at any time, give you a certificate for your profile at the end and most importantly allow you to learn new skills that might help with some confidence as you continue to go into the workforce. Best of luck. Please do reach out if you continue to feel at a loss. :) ... View more

After having a gap year when I graduated high school with the intention to work and save I realised how little I knew about saving and earning money! Another year on from this having nearly lived a full year out of home I feel a lot more equipped to give advice on this topic.    Here are some things that really helped me:   1. PRIORITISE- decide where you most like to spend your "spending money". Would you rather eat out? buy a new shirt? or add to a travel fund? Sometimes it's easier to pick one at a time to work towards.  2. When you get you payslip, take out an allocated amount for spending in CASH. Allow yourself to spend this amount, but only this amount, on extras throughout the week/fortnight. Eg- I would take out $150 from my full time earnings each week and that money was spent on time with friends, clothes, morning coffees. The non-essentials. The cash element helps curb the temptation to go over this limit. 3. LEARN. Do some research about money. I am not a finance person but learning about passive income and compounding interest has helped me in being able to maximise the money that I am saving without much extra work at all. ... View more