🌟 Helaine’s Quote of the Week:
Learn to be grateful for what you already have, while you pursue all that you want.
🗓️ Weekly Recap
Personal Life
Super excited to reunite with a lot of my friends, chug down too many cups of Blank Street matcha, and rot in my single dorm room!
The best part of going back to school is undoubtedly yapping and having fun with friends again. I had lots of meals with different people and got to hear about everyone’s amazing summer break! Let me know in the comments how your summer went. I would love to hear!
Also spending a lot of time alone like always doing things that I love like watching dramas, reading, and more!
Productivity Life
The first week of school is finally over!! Got back into the groove of things and rested well this weekend.
School: The only week of the entire semester where there is not an overwhelming amount of knowledge and homework. Enjoyed taking it slow and catching up with friends!
Content: Had a ton of videos to film and edit this past week for back-to-school season! Get excited for more content to come out very soon :)
🚀 Lessons Learned
Lessons & Challenges
Be Careful With My Belongings: I lost one of my cameras this week, which was definitely one of my lowlights. Although I still don’t remember when or how I lost it, this is definitely a reminder to myself to always be careful, no matter where I am or what I am doing.
Sometimes you need to do the hard thing now to make life easier later: I tried self-studying for my difficult Statistics class over the summer, but it got so confusing and annoying that I gave up. That is something I’m not proud of, and I am facing the consequences of my actions (or should I say lack of action) three months later—right now. Although I don’t regret it since I had a super enjoyable and relaxing summer, I do know that if I had pushed through during the summer, my life would be easier right now. So if you are also facing a challenging task right now, keep going for the future you.
Tips
Preview for classes by searching for class material (lecture videos, textbooks, practice problems). Always try to get a brief overview of the information before class so you can better observe the knowledge your professor/teacher presents.
Never forget to spend time for yourself! You are a human, not a machine. Everyone deserves rest.
💖 Recent Obsessions
Pixel Pioneers: The Quirky Startup Redefining Digital Creativity
Book: Calm Your Mind With Food by Uma Naidoo
I got a copy of this book during my visit to Life Alive Organic Cafe (one of my fave cafes, definitely check it out if you are in the Massachusetts or Washington D.C. area). I’m only on Chapter 2, but I have been enjoying it a lot so far! I have always been interested in nutrition, and as someone who sometimes struggles with anxiety and stress, this book is super interesting and insightful!
Skincare: Biodance Bio Collagen Real Deep Mask
Omg I used this skincare mask one night after suffering with bad acne for the past few days. When I woke up, I was SHOOK! My swollen acne had gone down so much, it was literally magical. My skin was also peeling a bit, but it was glowing the morning after. Actually magical, I highly recommend!! The one I use is linked down below!
Food: Crunchy Unsalted Almond Butter from Trader Joe’s
Add a scoop into your yogurt bowl or acai bowl, and it is magical! I love any nut butter, but almond butter has become my recent favorite.
🔥 Ask Helaine
Question: What are the device models you use, and what is your best productivity tip for studying?
I use the iPhone 14 Pro Max, MacBook Air 13-inch, and iPad Pro most of the time.
For filming, work, and personal use, I have also been really liking the Samsung Galaxy S25 phone and the ASUS Zenbook A14 laptop.
The best productivity tip for studying would be to schedule your time out in chunks and focus on one task at a time! My time is blocked into five-minute intervals, and I schedule one task or one subject for each chunk of time. Parkinson’s Law states that you will stretch out the completion of your tasks until they fill the time allotted to complete them. Therefore, set a challenging but still reasonable time chunk to complete your task and then sit down, focus, and get it done as fast as possible. Don’t do other things, because that will prevent you from entering the flow state, which will greatly improve your productivity levels.
🏆 Looking Ahead…
I am still in the process of getting adjusted to college life and workload again, so not too many goals or aspirations for this upcoming week! I just want to stay on top of things, not fall behind, stay healthy, and take time for myself!
Goal: Stay on top of my work and give myself the grace and time to understand difficult concepts!
Feel free to leave your goal for next week by responding to this email or in the comment section!
See you next week,