macademiastudies

[macademiastudies]

Moving my blog to @macadamiastudies

Hi all! I'm moving my blog to a different account for two main reasons:

I'm not able to get back into my email and I set this tumblr up with no password, so if I lose that then it makes it way easier to lose this account

I didn't realize what primary and secondary blogs were?? And I'd like to entirely focus on my study blog :)

Thus, I really hope you'll follow me to my new account, because I'm genuinely so passionate about posting this stuff and absolutely love the Tumblr community

@macadamiastudies

[macademiastudies]

December 15th, 2024

Day 9/150 Days of Growth I spent another cold, quiet day at the library and continued with a bit of coding and started a learning Challenge on Microsoft. What I got done today: 👜 Some LeetCode challenges (easy level because I don't have the capacity to be challenged today) 👜 Read half of Smart Cuts by Shane Snow 👜 Signed up for the Microsoft Azure learners challenge and completed the first section 👜 1 hour of the Microsoft Azure course 👜 Completed half of the math review portion of the GMAT official prep guidebook 👜 Spent 2 hours cooking dinner

Playlist for the day:

What I need to do tomorrow: 🕰 Wrap up and submit my assignment for AZ-900 🕰 Complete another unit on Azure 🕰 Unit 2 on the Microsoft Learners challenge 🕰 Complete the current unit for Python 🕰 Clean my room and fix my shelf 🕰 Create a tutorial for my coworker

[macademiastudies]

December 14th, 2024

Day 9/150 Days of Growth

Had a quiet study day at a medical library today. I did some Azure exam prep and then spent the rest of the day coding + watching some House MD. I picked up some new books including "unlimited memory" and an official GMAT guide I'll be doing only a section every day (slow, but steady). Also rewarded myself with this Krispy Kreme tumbler which is already SO useful. What I got done today: ✒️ Finished the current section of Azure exam prep ✒️ Completed my first ever assignment in Azure ✒️ Mapped out how to fix my portfolio in Python ✒️ Some LeetCode questions ✒️ Completed 2 parts of my CS50 assignment ✒️ 20 minutes of GMAT math review

Playlist of the day:

[macademiastudies]

I'm really struggling here. There are so many things I want and need to be. SO many things I should study, so many career paths I need to take, so many things in life that I need to get to. By studying it all, I'm getting nothing done. How do I get myself together? I need to be able to prioritize what I'd like to study and where I want to be in life, so I'm writing this post to puke it all out and hopefully fix it with a little glitter. I'm making a list and categorizing them with Emojis for what I should put a longer-term pause on, what I should put up next, and what I should study now. Stuff I should study now: ✒️ Python for data analysis and machine learning ✒️ Using statistical models on python ✒️ JavaScript/React for web development ✒️ Azure AZ-900 exam prep Stuff I should get to soon but not now: 📜 Data structures & algorithms 📜 A new language Stuff that would be better to pause for now: 🤎GMAT, for my future MBA 🤎Blender, to create 3D images and interactive tools With things like my GMAT exam prep I can practice 30 minutes a day or 10 pages a day instead of actively making it a major focus of my day and missing out on the things that I really wanted to study right now. Thus, it may be better to turn my 150 days of GMAT prep into just 150 days of productivity ☕ I hope you'll understand and that hopefully, you guys are also coming to a position where you can truly focus on what you want to focus on in life

[macademiastudies]

December 9th, 2024

Studying for the GMAT (MBA Admissions Test) day 9/150

Today was a rainy, relaxed study day-I only really did review and finished up the chapter of the Princeton Review Book that I was on. It was relaxed to the point where I'm not sure if I should actually include this as a studying for GMAT day.

I attempted one of the LeetCode problems that I was working on, but ultimately I'm stumped and hopefully sleeping on it will help. The LeetCode 'easy' tags are so misleading smh.

The rest of the day was full of doing my nails and baking for the potluck tomorrow-I make churros for every single potluck I've been to but considering I have to be at work the whole day I made a caramel flan instead.

What I got done today:

Princeton Review finished up current chapter on arithmetic math

Once again reviewed equation substitution because I'm really not understanding the way the GMAT phrases the questions

Attempted some LeetCode problems

Painted my nails a Christmas theme and considering I broke one nail I slapped on a press on nail for that one finger

Baked a caramel flan which is still steaming

Playlist for the day:

[macademiastudies]

December 8th, 2024

Studying for the GMAT day 8/150

I spent a few hours at a board game cafe I've been frequenting lately- the decorations are absolutely beautiful and they have a massive collection of games. It's not a place I would expect to be frequenting as I'm not a huge fan of the coffee and the food is a bit overpriced for what it is, but the environment is genuinely so heartwarming and all the employees are sweet. Today's been a productive day and I've gotten so much more than I thought I would do. My brains fried though I just did my skin care routine twice today.

What I did today:

Data visualization unit of the online GMAT math review course

Princeton Review: went back and re-wrote my algebra notes, to make sure I can memorize it better

Completed some online examples about substituting equations and factoring

Completed one more section of the data visualization course that I have been putting off

FINALLY completed that yfinance python API project

Completed one python LeetCode question

Finished up my current unit on an Azure course

Playlist for the day:

I know the GMAT has a lot more than math, however math is the only thing I've really truly struggled with and that I know I would procrastinate if I were to start with other things. So, I've started with math as I'm most likely to give up on it and wanted to tackle the hardest thing first so I have something to look forward to.

[macademiastudies]

December 7th, 2024

Studying for the GMAT day 7/150

Today I went to an old library in a 50's-esque part of another town to study. It was gorgeous, with big windows of every shape and a well decorated ceiling. With the snow, my pre-packed lunch, and a protein shake I really felt like an IT girl crossing everything off my to-do list.

Today I focused less on the GMAT and more on studying Azure for work- however I'm still sticking to my study plan and getting things done. I reviewed factoring today, which I already struggled with in school. To top it off, it's worse on the GMAT. It got my hopes down but studying in the library made sure I kept trying, and worked as at least a positive contrast.

What I did today:

Completed 2 units on an online GMAT prep course, including descriptive stats

Did factoring practice from the Princeton review book

Memorized 3 key formats and did practice to set it in

Watched multiple factoring videos

Completed 1 unit of the Azure review course

Went through my old SQL notes, quizzing myself

Wrote up some practice sticky notes on my walls to review later

Put up some Christmas decor in my room

Completed one more CS50 mini assignment

Playlist for the day:

However, I'm used to newer community centers where I don't need to leave the building to get a coffee or eat, so I left the old library after a few hours and moved over to my usual place... :)

[macademiastudies]

December 6th, 2024

Studying for the GMAT exam day 6/150

I'll be going to the library to study again tomorrow, so I also created an action items list that I need to get done. Over the weekend I feel so productive and motivated but then when I get to having to balance work and studying on the weekdays it's hard not to lose that motivation. I feel as though it's a bit easier when I actually have a routine- such as on in person days when I get to work 2 hours early so I can study and then leave 2 hours late so I can study again. I've also been trying to get other parts of myself together including doing tons of skin care and actually setting up a routine every morning that involves skin and hair care, which helps me feel put together even when I'm working from home.

Today was a pretty quiet day, had my tea and went back to the questions I bookmarked before that I got wrong. I bookmark all the questions differently-based on if I got it wrong before, if I struggled, or if I decided it would be best to do it later on (ie. the diagnostic test, since i'd rather start from scratch).

What I got done today:

Re-did everything I bookmarked as I got wrong before

Read a few more chapters with the 'Pumpkin Plan'

Completed a CS50P assignment about APIs/libraries

Found a simpler way to do a task at work that's been bothering me

Binge watched desperate housewives

The playlist for today:

[macademiastudies]

December 5th, 2024

Studying for the GMAT exam day 5/150

I've been upset about how much I've been getting done the past few days- but looking back has helped me come to terms with my highs and lows. I can see it all in one place and know this isn't a pattern or a bad habit. It's good to take some time off, and hopefully, I will get better in the next few months. I did lots of reading yesterday and today- still getting through the Divine Comedy but I finished 'You, Inc'. I've heard summaries of the Divine Comedy online and was genuinely really interested by the premise so I had really high hopes for this book but it's really not living up to what I was hoping to get out of this book.

Regardless, about the GMAT I went back a few chapters in the Princeton GMAT review book to do a couple more examples. I put sticky notes in my book so tomorrow I'll also address the chapters that I felt I could do better after studying the content and then waiting a few days so the information isn't as fresh in my mind.

There's been a winter storm the past few days so the playlist for the day was:

[macademiastudies]

December 3rd, 2024

Studying for the GMAT day 4/150

I was listening to a podcast episode (linked below) coming home from work today, and one line really stuck with me. It essentially said to take a look at everything on your to-do list and consider

'if you only got this one task done today, would you be satisfied with the day'

Looking at my older posts so you can clearly tell how many different things I had wanted to do in a single day and how I tried to do everything and ended up doing less on those days. It makes the world just difference when I carefully consider what I set out to do in a day, and then consider everything before I actually start it. I no longer start things because it's on my to-do list but because it is something I genuinely want to accomplish. That way I go to bed feeling so much more accomplished with myself no matter how many items I crossed off a list.

What I got done today:

Re-learned factoring

Did more basic Mental Math practice to improve my speed

Focused on doing a few more word problem examples to better understand how the GMAT words questions- and how they try to trick us

Went to work and didn't fall asleep

Did tons of interview practice

The podcast in question:

[macademiastudies]

December 2nd, 2024

Day 3/150 of studying for the GMAT

Today was yet again a cold quiet day, with sprinkles of snow. I stayed home and studied all day, with a candle to keep me company.

Instead of continuing on a linear path and going forward with the Princeton Review GMAT book, I took the day to review the basic math concepts I've been studying for the past few days. I also did some practice online for a couple of harder problems related to those topics to make sure I could do everything as quickly as possible during the actual exam. It feels strange to come back to math concepts I thought I'd never use again however studying it on my own terms now and going according to both my own pace as well as my own learning style has definitely changed the game.

What I got done today:

Did some basic math problems and Khan Academy review in preparation for the GMAT

Lots of reading

Self-improvement journaling

More data cleaning and preparation for future testing during work

Preparing for an interview I have this week

ft. the holiday smile cookie (which I bought and froze a box of so I could have them now)

Playlist of the day:

[macademiastudies]

December 1st, 2024

Day 2/150 of studying for the GMAT

Today wasn't a very aesthetically pleasing day but realistic nonetheless. I spent the entire day in my room today, attempting my best to catch up on all the work that I wanted to do as well as with my actual job work. I spent a bit more time planning for the business as well as doing some GMAT reviewing for basic math. Along with that, I am doing my work outside of work hours and I still feel like I can't get it done in time- I and my co-worker have been given >5000 members to go over. Well I'm grateful I'm exhausted and didn't get as much work as I wanted to get done today.

What I did today:

300 more records for work

Completed my GMAT notes from some of yesterday's content

50 pages of the Princeton Review GMAT

Cleaned out my room

Solidified the business idea and obtained requirements for the website I'm going to create

Playlist for the day (LOVE this one):

[macademiastudies]

November 30th, 2024

Day 1/150 studying for the GMAT.

Spent a quiet, cold day studying in the library. Yesterday, I found a bunch of GMAT books at the thrift store and I picked up the Princeton Review Prep book from the library today. I'm studying everything, especially the match from scratch- as in acting as if I know nothing at all. My math skills have never been great and I'd rather start over than miss something or spend longer confusing myself.

What I got done today:

🪶 The first 200 pages of the Princeton Prep book 🪶 3 pages of GMAT notes 🪶 Found a GMAT math review course on Coursera 🪶 Unit 6.2 in my Coursera Data Analysis course- as that's still going 🪶 Typed out all of my random notes from work 🪶 Did some data cleaning for work 🪶 Got a bunch of skincare to start a routine

Playlist for the day:

Just recovered from being sick- and now that it's freezing out getting sick or doing absolutely anything is the worst feeling ever <3. In other life update news, my father and I have been working on starting another business together- mostly just for my career and skill development rather than for profit.

[macademiastudies]

Playlist for the day: "You're Studying at an Oxford Library at Night"

Spent the day at the community center/library today and was more productive than I thought I would be. Lots of Python and GMAT prep today. I took another attempt at my Python data analysis assignment; and I'm really not understanding it. I'm not sure where to go from here- typically I enjoy studying on my own time and taking online courses because the projects have a much more realistic application. For example the goal is usually to create a program however this course really reminds me of school in the sense that the assignment is multiple choice questions that don't apply to how I would work in an organization for example. I'm struggling with this as I've spent so much time on obtaining the certificate and I'm over halfway done but can't get it without this project

What I got done today: ☕ALL assignments for unit 1 and 2 for CS50 (and part-way through the unit 3 assignments) ☕Went to the library and picked up some books ☕Drafted work messages ☕Data analysis course unit 6.1 and 6.2 ☕Got up to ch. 5 of 'Industries of the Future' ☕Leveled up in Italian Duolingo and learned some phrases online

[macademiastudies]

November 22nd, 2024

Chemtrails Over the Country Club - Lana Del Rey ⇄ ◁◁ II ▷▷ ↻ ⁰⁰ ²⁵ ━━●━━━━━━━━ ⁰² ⁰⁸

Myself and my best friend decided to take the GMAT test together in a month- yes, a massive stretch but the pressure may work better for me. I need to improve my rate of actually following through with work that I start, so I'm going to start and not stop with the GMAT and finally tackle some daunting assignments today. Got tons of random stuff on the to-do list today, so seeing it all laid out here helps tackle each task one by one. Reading at a 50s-themed cafe- ft. some deep fried halloumi sticks because my arteries can go sue me. To-do: 🦉Take GMAT diagnostic test 🦉Setup a GMAT study plan + order some books 🦉Find a new budgeting template, mine is getting harder to trace spending 🦉Set up my new bedside shelf 🦉Order some new essential oils 🦉Get my new passport 🦉Setup a box of donations 🦉Write down work SOPs 🦉submit yfinance Python Project 🦉CS50 Python Lecture 1 assignments 🦉CS50 Python Lecture 2 assignments (yes yes I'm behind now) 🦉Duolingo level 2 🦉Data course unit 6.1 🦉Wrap gift for work party

Self-care: 🕯️Everything-shower 🕯️High-intensity workout

Reading: 🦉Industries of the future - read up to ch 4 🦉The pumpkin plan - read up to ch 5

P.s. icon at the start is from emojicombos

[macademiastudies]

I always found insights from productivity books useful but never understood why it never truly helped me. Journaling my to-do lists has helped understand exactly why because improving yourself is not a one size fits all but rather changes you can make based on what exactly you're struggling with. Now knowing what you're struggling with is much easier said than done, but journaling my to do lists has helped me identify exactly what I'm putting off and why. It helps me understand the time of day I finish things, which days are more productive, and identify exactly why (whether it be the time of day, my habits that day or where I work from). This also helps me understand what kind of schedule works best for me whether it be the Pomodoro technique, eat the frog technique, or time blocking.

[macademiastudies]

November 18th, 2024

I'm happy with how much I got done yesterday, however today is a difficult day because I have two major projects-one in Python and one in JavaScript that I've been putting off that I need to get done today. I'm somewhat nervous because I started both of these projects and stopped a while ago because of how difficult they were. This is why I want to wake up early in the morning when I'm fresh and can actually work on this project effectively. I truly appreciate journaling my to-do lists because otherwise I would not even think to approach these assignments and try to find a way of pushing them off or coming up with easier projects I can do. To-do list: Studying: 🦉Update my budget with this months spending 🦉Resolve some work tickets 🦉Update databases for work 🦉Data analysis unit 6.1 🦉Data Analysis Unit 5 project 🦉Continue with react portfolio 🦉Type out more handwritten notes 🦉Python Coursera Final Project 🦉Python CS50 Lect 1 Projects Self-care: 🕯️Do a face mask 🕯️Wrap Christmas presents for a work party 🕯️Scrapbook a bit 🕯️30 min workout Reading: 📰The Industries of the Future ch. 3 📰The Pumpkin Plan ch. 2 Language: 🏛️Italian level 2 - Happy studying, H