Have you recently found yourself staring off into outer space during important lectures, reading without comprehension orwishing you could study for more than a handful of minutes at a time? Don’t feel like you’re alone if you are lacking focus! We at Valore Books were college students ourselves and understand how many diversions there in college life.

In an attempt to help you gain much needed focus, we’ve developed the following five tips for helping you get grounded:

1.      Make a daily and weekly priority list. Keep your list where you can see it at all times and check off completed items. You will be amazed at how much energy you’ll gain when you’ve finished a task with flying colors.

2.      Get enough sleep. Try to sleep for between 7-8 hours an night. It is nearly impossible to focus when your mind is filled with cobwebs due to exhaustion.  To get enough sleep, you’ll probably need to forego wild parties during the week and ask your buddies to go back to their own dorm rooms/apartments after a certain hour.

3. Exercise is a must. Schedule in 3-5 days of workouts per week. There’s a powerful connection between mental clarity and exercise. The less you exercise, the more likely you’ll be sluggish and full of silly excuses for not being able to focus.

4. One thing at time. We dare you to put aside all distractions when you begin a task. It’s nearly impossible to fully focus when one second you are studying, the next texting a message to a friend, and the next checking out your Facebook page. In fact, the mind becomes quite frustrated by constant interruptions. It is much more rewarding to finish one activity and then move on to the next.

5. Five Minute meditations. Each morning before you get out of bed and/or when you go to bed in the evening, set aside five minutes for meditation/silence. This exercise helps the mind decompress and makes way for focus. Each day you are surrounded with music, ringing cell phones, lecturing professors, talking friends and other stimuli that tires out your brain. Taking five minutes to recharge your brain’s battery will go a long way.

We hope these ideas will help you gain more focus in the days to come.  Plus, we’d love for you to share your own tips on finding focus. Please visit our Facebook page and post your ideas on our wall.

Are you anxious about an upcoming paper and need some tips? If you are a bit nervous, you aren’t alone. It’s actually a known factthat one of the most dreaded aspects of college for many students is writing term papers. Experts have revealed that fear (also known as resistance) is the number one culprit of writer’s block.

Believe it or not, writing papers can actually be an interesting process and rewarding. In an effort to help you write a stellar paper, we have compiled the following 7 Tips:

1.      Narrow down and define your topic. Take time to really think about your topic and make it as defined as possible. When a topic is overly general, it is difficult to find the right sources, write a concise argument and effectively support the paper’s premise.

2.      Develop an outline. Once you’ve defined your topic, you should outline your entire paper. An outline should include your introduction, main points, support for your main points and conclusion. The more detailed you get, the easier and faster it will be to write.

3.      Solid sources. Make sure that you locate plenty of great sources to help validate your topic and arguments. It is a good rule of thumb to gather more sources than you will use, read them thoroughly, make notes, and discard sources that don’t provide the support you need.

4.      Format correctly. Become a pro at using the required format (as prescribed by your professor). Whether using MLA, APA or any other format type, the more you know about formatting the better off you are. There is nothing that irks a professor more than receiving a wrongly formatted paper.

5.      Be creative. If you really want to stand out from your fellow students, don’t be afraid to get creative when making your arguments. Keep in mind that professors have to read through numerous papers. An innovative paper is usually more than welcomed!

6.      Proofread. When you have finished your paper, make sure that you carefully read through each sentence for grammar and spelling errors. Also, make sure your paper flows well and is easily understood. To be extra certain, it’s a great idea to have a friend serve as your proofreader for the term. Sometimes proofing your own work can be quite a challenge – that second pair of eyes can make all the difference in the world.

7.      Ask for guidance when needed. Some professors are more than willing to offer help when you become stuck. They may even offer to read through your paper and offer suggestions before you turn in a paper. Take advantage of this opportunity if possible.

We wish you luck as you embark on the writing of your next paper. Also, if you have any other tips you’d like to share; we’d love to hear them! Visit our Facebook wall and share away.