By Sam Beaumont

Panic stations…

Hands up, who else is starting SCA in September and has realised that they still have a metric fuck tonne of stuff to get done before the first day rolls around? Yeah, me too. I wasn’t sure whether to use my first SCAB to confess how little I’ve done so far but there are 3 reasons why I’ve gone for it.

Firstly, using a post to admit my failings means I’m one task down. 1 out of the 3 reflective blog posts I’ll write between now and September is done. That’s something at least.

Second, in these times of hardship and struggle I hope that we can find some solace in the fact that all/most/some of us are in the same boat. So to anyone else who’s realising how much they have to do, I hope that my admission of mild panic can be an arm around your shoulder, a metaphorical blankie providing reassurance and hope.

The final reason I wrote this post is that I wanted to share my plan of action for getting all of this work done in the time that’s left. Maybe putting it online for all the world to see will force me into actually sticking to it. So here it is:

1. Every night, make a plan for what needs to get done the next day. Last night my plan said (1) get out of bed, (2) write first SCAB entry, (3) email first SCAB entry to Marc. I’ve already done two of those today so this technique is obviously a winner.
2. Find a better working environment. Working alone from home hasn’t done my productivity any favours so I need to get myself in a more creative space where the people I see day-to-day don’t mostly consist of the cast of Game of Thrones.
3. Get hungry again. A year of limbo between university and whatever might come next has left me in an existential and motivational funk. In order to get back my appetite for advertising I’ll start with a healthy diet of TED talks, exhibitions and books from the reading list.
4. Sleep less. It can’t hurt to make more time in the day. Also it sounds like I’ll struggle to continue getting 8-10 hours of sleep next year anyway so I might as well start now.
5. Finally, get the ball rolling early. I’ve always had a habit of leaving everything to the last minute, but no more. This time I’ve still got 7 weeks and spending September 12th skim reading books, hurriedly writing blog posts, and throwing together a “This is me” video is not an option.