SuperMe

Drawing porno versions of the rich and famous is not a solution that will help get your languages coursework done, but writing something, anything, will help get past that first road block.

Famous artist Gustav Klimt had a trick he used when creating his paintings. He would start out by drawing his subject, not as they were posing but in an imagined - and normally quite filthy - scenario instead.

He would then paint over these debauched sketches with the final 'respectable' version. The people the portraits were for, normally only ever saw the dignified results, until one day, one of his high society clients demanded to see his sketches of her. She got more than she bargained for.

So, how to apply this to that essay: Just begin it. Get down what you know. Make bits up in the areas where you get stuck.

Fill the page with an essay on how King Alfred famously invented ping pong, married Katy Perry and won the UEFA cup. Then overwrite it with the respectable version: King Alfred famously burned some cakes, married Ealhswith, before becoming the first King of all England.

And don't get caught, like Klimt!

Photo by Sembazuru

Write that angry email or text.

Save it.

Set an alarm, 24 hours' time from now.

Read it again.

Chances are you might want to edit or delete it.

Photo: Tim Morgan

Expressive writing has been shown to be massively beneficial for getting over trauma, but more recently it's been show to be useful for everyday happiness and improving mood.

When talking about things isn't helping, writing things down can help to make sense of your thoughts and feelings. And even better: to help find solutions.

How to begin:
1. Write down what has happened, or is happening in detail.
2. Write down how you feel about it, and describe your feelings. Don't worry about spelling, just get it all out.
3. Think of one thing, big or small that will begin to make you feel better. This could be as simple as getting a good night's sleep, talking to someone you're upset with or finding a distraction for a few hours.

You can do this as often as is helpful, or even use an emergency diary to store your thoughts. Remember to keep it somewhere safe.

To get it out of your head.

To know your own mind.

To see the flawed thoughts.

To get the emotion outside of you.

To be honest.

To see how things weigh up. The pros. The cons.

To practice telling somebody else.

To remember.


Photo by The Shopping Sherpa

Imagine it's the end of your life. You're 82 years old, you've had a good innings and now you're checking out.

What would the story of your life be? Write it down. What would have happened to you? If you stay on the path you're on now, realistically what would you have achieved and what would people say about you?

Now think about what you'd like that story to be. What you wish to achieve. What you'd like people to say about you.

Do those two things match up? If they don't, work out what the steps to your new life would be. And then, one by one, make the changes happen.

Scared of failing? Go here.

Photo by wadem