For the past few days, I've been working hard as finals are near and I have to study a lot. As well as practice my piece for the concert which is also not that far away. And work on my newsletter, draft article, finish all those writings, assignments, and a ton more. So, after designating every hour of my day to some work and really creating a schedule that forces me to focus at all times, I noticed a pattern. Whatever I do, if I do it first thing after school or early in the morning or basically at any beginnings, I tend to fall in love with that, I keep working and lose track of time and I just keep going and it feels so amazing. On the other hand if I stop even for some time say after 10 mins, I look at my phone for just 5 mins, it changes everything, I'm not longer 100% doing what my intentions were, instead I find my mind wondering off into many directions. What I found interesting though is that although I did competitively get more done in the first scenario, if I enter the second scenario, the opposite happens, I don't get as much done but along the way of doing my tasks, my mind wonders off to such amazing places and I find all these amazing ideas and patterns and feelings and answers that are just impossible to find with a pen and a paper and I love the feeling it leaves me with, there's no base, nothing to guide me, no connection between each thought, our mind is just so amazing and beautiful. These new discoveries you make, they're not some big new ground breaking discoveries, they've always been there yet we just forget about them, never see them, they're just simply amazing. So moral of the story, when you try and try to be intentional about trying and acknowledge your imperfections, you're almost promised to always be left with great outcomes.

I have finished my background research for isef and am confused on what to start next as it seems like a lot. What should I do now?

Hello, I plan on majoring in biotechnology and I am not sure on what I should plan out for my high school plan. I am currently a freshman and I am wondering if anyone has any advice on what I should be doing right now to be preparing for sophomore/junior year. Thanks!

Hello all, Im currently doing a research project on computational psychology and am struggling to find a mentor. Can anyone give me some advice, Ive sent around 12 emails to professors with no response.

Ever had that moment where you're so absorbed in what you're doing that you lose track of time? That’s total focus. It’s not just about sitting still or working hard; it's about being all in, mentally and physically. Every part of your mind is tuned into just one thing, almost like the world fades out. Getting to that point isn’t easy. I’m finding that it takes practice to ignore distractions and build up concentration. Some people do it with routines or by working in short, intense bursts (ever heard of the Pomodoro Technique?). Others say it helps to visualize their goal first. For me, it's still a work in progress. What does focus look like for you? If you have any tricks for blocking out everything else, I’d love to hear them!