Category Archives: Self-Improvement

It may be the end of spring semester, but for those of you who will be moving from the dorms into an apartment or house downtown, there is plenty to think about regarding packing up and prepping for move-in next year.

When you live in the dorms two years in a row, you load up the same mound of clothes and bins each year. Moving into an apartment is a whole different ballgame. (Finally no more dining hall food or RA’s – yay!). But with new empty space in an apartment, you’re going to need some unexpected extras to make your new place home!

Cleaning Supplies

Whether you have an on-campus meal plan or not, your new apartment will have a kitchen—and you will use it! Make sure to always have extra dish soap, sponges and paper towels at the ready. With kitchen messes and pregames to cleanup, cleaning supplies are a must! A vacuum, swiffer, and Lysol wipes will always come in handy. Continue reading →

As women, we are guilty of saying some annoying things. It is no question that our abbrev’s totes bother guys. So maybe our annoying cute little habits are more obvious and easy to detect, but this is not to say that guys don’t have them too. The annoying things that guys say are always laced with little implications (mostly, that we’re crazy). Here’s a roundup of the most irritating things guys say to us.

“Calm Down/Relax”

This is perhaps the most irritating and condescending utterance that can come from a guy’s lips. I’m sorry, am I ten years old? I don’t need to be patronized. This is many guys’ go-to line when they want a fight to be over, without apologizing. This puts all the blame on us, making it sound like we are over-emotional crazy people. We haven’t shown you crazy yet. Continue reading →

When I hear the words “role model,” several thoughts come to mind: inspiration, character, achievement. A role model is someone that’s touched your heart, from near or far. Someone you wish your life resembled more closely. They inspire you to be a better person, to succeed and to do what is right.

Roles models come from various backgrounds, histories and beliefs. One thing they have in common, however, is influence. Whether a role model influences thousands of people or just one person, their attributes go unnoticed. Role models are often humble, honest and creative. Most have chased their dreams and followed their hearts, inspiring others to do the same. They lead a life well-respected, understanding the precious time to share with those you love and doing what you love.  Continue reading →

Dating in college is tricky…that is, if you can even call it dating. Our version of dating doesn’t involve flowers or restaurants.  No, no. Our dating involves a party and a mutual attraction. We flirt, subtly get to know him and then decide if we are both interested.

It then escalates from seeing him out at night to the occasional hangout during the week. But what if, just when you think things might be getting serious, he slaps that ugly and mind-blowingly confusing title on it, just friends?

We’re girls. Naturally, this freaks us out. We’ll start running through everything in our heads, trying to pinpoint exactly where we went wrong. But as with all things male, there is no definite answer. After our short-lived bout of insecurity, what are we to do next? Continue reading →

Internships can be the most rewarding experience in your college career. But sometimes, preparing for them is almost like you’re going into a battlefield. With deadlines, non-stop ringing phones, a mile-long list of tasks and a not-so-nice supervisor, you might want to flip a table sometimes. Preparation is key – here are five things to make your internship a little less stressful. For your pearly whites Teeth may not make or break your overall performance on the job but it is important to have some fresh breath when you go talk to your supervisor. The key is to have different kinds of mints to keep the halitosis at bay. Pop a mint if you have a few minutes before but make sure you’re not still chomping on it and trying to hide it under your tongue while you’re talking. A breath spray or dissolvable strips are quick ways to have fresh breath without being too obvious. Remember to pack floss just in case you get a piece of spinach from your Cosi salad stuck in your teeth. Continue reading →

For an on-the-go college student, blogging may seem like a daunting task. It requires extra time, effort and energy that we can’t seem to squeeze into our schedules. In reality, blogging can be a simple task that looks great to any future employer or when applying to internships. With the growing presence of technology, career counselors have made it clear that it’s no longer just about traditional resumes and cover letters anymore. Set yourself apart by starting your very own professional blog. Valley has compiled some smart and savvy tips to get you started:

Choose a hosting website

There are a number of websites dedicated to starting blogs, so choosing the right one to create a blog on is totally up to you. Many people choose to host their blogs on WordPress. Creating a blog through WordPress is free and has a good quick-start guide for the first-time blogger. Google’s Blogger and Weebly.com are other great sites to help you get started. Continue reading →