You are here: Home / Archives for college

Sound Machines for College Students

September 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Part of being successful in college is tuning out unnecessary voices.

College Life

It’s nearing the end of September, and doubtless the newness of college life has worn off a bit.  You survived syllabus shock, but those assignments, quizzes, and tests that seemed so far off are now looming large.  It’s hard to motivate yourself to study, but you know you have to study to pass.  It’s not high school any more- guessing rarely turns out well and your teachers are professors who have hundreds of students, making your pleas for leniency less credible.

3 Reasons Every College Student Needs a Sound Machine

Fear not- you are not doomed to failure or stress the entire 4, 5, or 6 years of your college life.  Allow me to suggest a few reasons why every college student needs his or her own sound machine

.

  1. For sleep. Sleep is incredibly important, and sadly, there are no guarantees that you and your roomies will sleep the same schedules.  In fact, I can almost promise you that you won’t.  Instead of feeling frustrated by excessive noise, a sound machine can bring the peace you need to fall asleep.
  2. For downtime. Again, you and your roommates will need downtime at different times based on your daily routine and individual preferences.  If you find yourself wanting a few minutes of peace at the exact same time your roommate is jamming out or having a loud phone call, once again the soothing nature sounds of a sound machine will enable you to tune them out.
  3. For studying. You’ve got a test tomorrow and your roommates are throwing a party.  Yikes.  Instead of flipping out or being the roommate everyone hates because of your complaints, try turning up some noise of your own- white noise.  Proven to reduce distractions and maximize productivity, the white noise used in sound machines physically confuse your brain so that it tunes out unwanted noise.

There’s really no reason not to give white noise a shot…well, maybe you’re a poor college student…well, in that case, here’s a free online generator.  You’re welcome.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

How to Deal with Room Mate Conflicts

September 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Room Mate Issues

Everybody looks forward to going to college…well, not the classes per se, but all the rest.  Even living with friends, maybe especially living with friends because it’s your first step away form home and being under your parents’ authority….The trouble is that most of us end up having room mates and still have to learn to play nicely with others.  Room mates end up being a whole lot more challenging than parents because they simply don’t love us the way a parent does.  Without unconditional love, it’s much harder to co-habitate.  Whether it’s dishes, cleaning, fridge space, entertaining guests, study hours, or general etiquette, we all have different expectations.  Most of the time a simple, non-agressive conversation will resolve much of the tension.  Here are a few pointers for making it work.

Tips for Dealing with Room Mate Issues

  • Determine your issues and make a list of what you’d like to see improved.
  • Before confronting anyone else, consider where you might be to blame or how they’ll react.
  • Make a second list of things you’d be willing to take ownership of: for example, I’ll take out the trash if you’ll vacuum.  Try to make it a fair compromise.
  • Ask your room mate(s) to sit down for a chat about it.  Make it a relaxed atmosphere and try not to sound angry.
  • Try to set some agreed upon hours for the apartment, including but not limited to: entertaining, studying, sleeping, or cleaning.  If you have boundaries here, everyone is less likely to get frustrated.
  • Try white noise.  Here is a free generator you can run while studying to block noise for when you need pace and quiet.  You might consider a sleep aid for when you need to sleep and everyone else is still up.

Most room mate issues boil down to unmet expectations.  You may feel frustrated that no one honors your time or efforts, but it’s not fair to blame them if you have;t talked about it.  Try having a friendly conversation about what each of you can do to make living together a little ore enjoyable, and be willing to be proactive.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,