Happy 2026!

It’s been a while since the last blog.

In the meantime, life has been full in good ways. I’ve had the excitement—and the real reward—of coaching academic coaches, and of developing and delivering a series of workshops through the fall term for advisors at a community college. Thoughtful people, good questions, practical conversations about how students actually move through their terms. Work that reminds me, again, why this field matters.

And now here we are: first week of winter term.

At this point in the calendar, students are usually focused on the immediate horizon—syllabi, early assignments, getting back into routines. All sensible. But this week I’ve been encouraging them to do something that isn’t quite so obvious.

Look ahead to reading break.

Not in the usual way. Not “What will I do during reading break?” but rather: What do I want to have done before reading break arrives?

That small shift matters.

Reading break has a funny way of turning into a psychological dumping ground. We tell ourselves we’ll catch up then. Start big projects. Finish everything that didn’t quite get done earlier. Rest, too—somehow. The result is often an impossible pile of work squeezed into a very short window, which manages to be neither productive nor restorative.

If, instead, students plan backward from reading break—deciding what they want completed by that point—they can make more realistic choices now. They can distribute the load across the weeks where there is actually time and structure to do the work. And there’s a secondary benefit: reading break has a chance of becoming what it’s meant to be.

A break.

Maybe even one with a bit of R&R that doesn’t feel guilty.

This isn’t about perfection or getting ahead for the sake of it. It’s about avoiding the quiet trap of deferred overwhelm. It’s about being kind to your future self—especially the version of you who hits midterm season already tired.

And, oh yes—one more reminder while we’re here.

Now is the time to get funding and paperwork sorted. Applications, forms, signatures, confirmations. These things have a way of becoming urgent only after it’s too late to fix them quickly. A little attention early in the term can save a lot of stress later on.

Winter term moves fast. A bit of looking ahead—strategically, not anxiously—can make all the difference.

Good start to a term full of potential–connect with me for tips on gaining the most from that potential [email protected]

The information in this blog cannot take the place of support from your own mental health professional or community health resources. Reach out to them. And IF YOU ARE IN CRISIS, PLEASE DIAL 911.