As I’m sure everyone is well aware, exam season is nearly upon us. Along with this comes numerous tips (including some from my fellow bloggers) about how to do well on your exams. This is probably because people want to be successful, and more often than not equate success to happiness. This of course leads to problems; when you don’t get the grade you want, you may end up extremely unhappy. So I’m going to offer some tips on how to be less stressed, and overall happier with yourself, regardless of your results.

The first bit of advice is to work hard. Working hard might not get you the results you want 100% of the time, but hard work is never bad for you. You’ll probably get better at whatever it is you’re doing, and at the end of the day, that’s a big part of the reason you’re in school. As well, learning to know when you worked hard is just as important. Some people (myself included) have a tendency to always feel like they didn’t work as hard as they could have, even if they studied for seven hours straight. Having pride in all of the work you have done is important, and will make you feel less stressed and happier no matter what the outcome was.

The next bit of advice is to realize you can’t control everything.  Many students tend to blame themselves entirely when they get a bad mark. This might be justified in some cases, but some of the time, your mark is out of your control. Your prof might be a ridiculously hard marker, or you might have gotten a flu that cause you to have to stay in bed all week. If you put all of your effort into an assignment, you shouldn’t feel guilty about getting a bad mark.

Another thing to remember is that worrying is useless, especially once you’ve completed your exams. There’s nothing you can do at that point, so take a well-deserved break and relax. Worrying won’t change your mark, and it will probably make you feel worse when you have to go check your marks.

The last piece of advice I have is that your worth is not defined by your grades. It’s so easy to feel like grades are the most important thing in the world, and that if you screw up, you’ll have nothing. To some extent, grades are important. But grades are not what determines your worth as a person, or even as a employee. If you work hard at whatever you’re doing, and are respectful, pleasant, and helpful, chances are you’ll succeed.

So good luck to everyone on their exams!