After seven months and counting of Redbull-filled all-nighters, effortless procrastination, and the anxiety that comes with the snake-infested hallways and classrooms—again—it is totally understandable that, in the final yet critical days at this former prison, you might feel a little lethargic. But according to College Board, everyone’s favorite shopping website and online blog, you have to do your best at all times. Here are some tips to transform from a Chronically Stressed Out Viking to a Motivated Viking™.

1. Use your planner religiously.

The key way to stay “motivated”, according to every single generic advice website, is to “stay organized” and “have a plan.” Know what you have to do and when you have to finish that stuff to give the impression to colleges that you actually aren’t an unmotivated, incompetent drama addict—even after getting into somewhere that still isn’t UC Ohlone.

Wait, but you actually are one? Take out your planner now. Go to your class, and copy down everything that the teacher has on the board, word for word. Go on Schoolloop—everyone’s favorite social networking site—and do the same, in the tiny boxes of your planner. Hone your craft with writing in the margins.

2. Break everything down into smaller pieces.

Even if it’s just one question from the assignment, the gorgeous MLA header of the essay, or inserting cute gifs into your presentation, doing everything in tiny chunks gives the illusion of being productive on a daily basis. Then, when you reach the final long stretch, at least everything is formatted properly, and the aesthetics of your work is a legitimate bargaining point to go from.

Alternatively, literally rip your assignment into tiny chunks. A key part of staying motivated, as I read once while stressing over my policy paper, is by “breaking everything down.” It’s always better to have fifteen small assignments than one medium-sized one because you can now complain (brag) to all your friends about having fifteen times the workload.

3. Join a new club—now.

Whether you’re a senior counting off the days until graduation, or a junior Done With Everything™, you need to get your shebang together and at least display your interest in all the clubs on campus. Transcribe all the morning announcements if you need to and attend meetings for all of the clubs starting now. But what if you’re the only non-officer member there? Perfect; you just stood out from the crowd, which will fill you with so much self-esteem.

Embracing your interests, or feeding your ego (same difference), is the perfect way to get your creative juices flowing and gives you that motivation to actually leave your house.

4. Pull all-nighters by binge-watching TED Talks.

TED talks are a great way to get “inspired”—that is, feel depressed at how accomplished the rest of the world is when you’re still a procrastinating degenerate. As they all say, inspiration is motivation, even if it gives you depression.  

5. Put yourself first and live at your own pace.

The key part of staying “motivated,” is to stay “happy and fulfilled.” Feeling unmotivated, lethargic, and unwilling to get out of bed because you were catching up on all your shows—I mean, all the inspiring TED talks—at 2:00 a.m. are key symptoms of the flu, which was never a reason to miss school until senior year. Plus, this is one step closer to living life like a second semester senior, a goal that everyone works towards.

Similarly, strut down the runway of the parking lot and the hallways at your own pace like you own the place. Teachers don’t always follow the bell, so why should you? Don’t worry if the cars start honking at you—it’s their problem, not yours. So long as you remain a (questionably) healthy, happy, and Motivated Viking!