Next week I am going on annual leave.  This is something I have never experienced.  Throughout school and university you get allocated holiday time, when everybody is off during the same 3/4 weeks.  When you work, it is not like this.  You can take time off whenever you want depending on who else is in the office and whether there are enough people to cover you.  You are also limited by the number of days you can take off in a year. 

This means I am going off on holiday when lots of my friends are revising for their final year or are working and don't have the same time off as me.  It's very strange knowing that the world just continues, with the office still working with phone calls still being made.

But it also makes it quite exciting. I have come to value any days off I have because they are rare compared to the days off I would get while studying. It is also great because I physically cannot do any of my work when I am away from the office.  I cannot access my e-mails and do not have any of the resources I need in order to keep on working.

This is very different to university 'holidays'.  No matter how much time 'off' you get at uni, you will not relax.  This is because you could always be working, day and night, near or far.  You could always be doing more reading, more editing and more thinking.  This results in any 'relaxing' ending up in feelings of guilt at the knowledge you are not studying.

So, if there are any students reading this who are revising for their exams, just remember that you are allowed to relax and your brain needs to relax.  Try and treat revision like a 9 to 5 job and your desk like an office.  When you have completed your 8 hours step away and let your mind recover from the day.

I will return on the 20th of April ready for the start of the new term.  Best of luck with the final term of the year.  I believe in you!

--Amelia x