Habits

Written By: Dr. Rich Houston, Director of the Culverhouse School of Accountancy

I spoke to the AC310 students on Tuesday night, which I really enjoyed. While much of what appears below may seem to be directed specifically at them, I think it’s applicable to everyone in some way. Use your imagination.

Look Ahead but Stay in the Moment. It occurred to me recently that you have no idea how much growth you’ll experience in the next two years. Today, you may be confused and overwhelmed by your classes, the recruiting process, and how to manage your time and priorities. What you do not realize is that two years from now you will be in grad school, with a job, and the classes you dread now will be behind you. I will see you then and I will tell you that I hope you’re proud of how you overcame the initial fear, doubts, and confusion. Realize that, right now, you are in the midst of “before” so you cannot yet imagine what “after” will look like.

Habits. A wise person shared with me that many of you are being held back by your habits, such as spending too much time and emotional energy on social media, not eating well, dwelling on the negative, overconsuming energy drinks, and vaping, and you do not see the connection between these habits and your performance. I have an analogy.

My hands shake because I have what is called an essential tremor (why it’s called essential I don’t know, because I certainly don’t need it). I’ve noticed lately that they’ve been trembling more and concluded that the explanation is that the tremor is continuing to get worse over time.

I proudly told people that I drink one cup of coffee a day, consisting of a Keurig pod plus 1-2 teaspoons of instant. It took embarrassingly long, but last Sunday I realized that perhaps too much caffeine was the root cause of the problem. So, I cut back to just the pod and, lo and behold, the shaking’s gotten better.

One person told me today that she realized that her bad habit is talking badly about herself, which hinders her performance. Clearly, bad habits can take many forms. What’s yours and how is it impacting you? Is it worth it?

Relatedly, I love the concept that everything comes at a cost, with costs taking many forms that range from very large to very small. When you do something costly, consider its magnitude, both short and long-term, and weigh it against the benefits. Be very objective, and perhaps ask others for their input.

Ain’t No Shame . As a group, you are attending office hours and free tutoring even less than usual. By not showing up, you are squandering opportunities to meet people you can learn from. By “learn from,” I don’t just mean the material you’re studying, I also mean learning about yourself. By the way, one of the tutors told me to tell you that they don’t judge you based on what your score was, they just want to help.

I think this behavior is in part a consequence of COVID. Many of you are overrelying on online materials, avoiding human contact, and having trouble adjusting when a class is more difficult than any you’ve encountered before.

I was happy that a couple of people talked to me this week about how to improve their study habits. I provided advice, but I suggested that they also talk to their teacher, as they are best able to provide suggestions for how to improve. In addition, you should look into UA’s Capstone Center for Student Success as well as the Counseling Center, where you can find information about alleviating test anxiety .

There is absolutely no shame in seeking out ways to improve. Even if there were, would it be worse than the shame you feel because of your subpar performance? Let me be clear—you are not defined by a test grade, and there is no shame in underperforming, but it is a shame when you don’t do anything about it.

You should prefer Jif to Skippy. You’re better than skipping a class because you have a test in another, and there are several reasons that this is a bad idea. You missed what occurred in the class you skipped, and you probably feel guilty about skipping. In addition, instead of learning the material better, your score likely suffered because cramming overstresses the brain, which causes anxiety, frustration, fatigue, confusion, and mental blocks.

And finally:

• A lot of what appears important today may turn out to not be important at all.
• A great way to start a conversation is to ask, “what’s your favorite thing about_________?”
• You’re not wasting mine or anyone else’s time.
• I can’t get Ringo Starr’s song Photograph out of my head.
• Taking increasingly difficult classes is like climbing stairs that get progressively steeper. However, keep in mind that your legs are getting progressively longer, but only if you exercise them. I know this doesn’t totally make sense but work with me.
• Talk to one of us about tough decisions or situations you encounter during the job search process.
• You will face choices with no readily apparent right answers. Remember that what may at first look like a mistake or a bad break may turn out to be the best thing that could have happened to you.
• Today, a speaker in my class said that “if you don’t have a plan, you’ll fall for flattery every time.”
• If you’re keeping something serious to yourself, please don’t.
• Is this a great oxymoron or what?