After talking about all struggles and mistakes while working on the Final Project, here are a few tips on how to maintain motivation for the Final Project. Believe me, motivation is the hardest part to maintain while you are working on Final Project (and I think it applies to anything related big project/task to do). All tips below are based on my experience and I hope they will fit you all readers as well!
1. It is okay to not be okay
If you ever feel tired and burnout while working on your TA, it is okay to relax. If you want to cry, just cry and let your emotion out. If you need someone to talk to, just talk with them. If you feel so exhausted, just take a rest if it can make you feel better. Every emotion you had in your life is normal and needs some place to pour all your negative emotions.
2. Take a break and do your hobbies
There is a reason why God rests on the 7th day. So were we. We have like 5 days to work on our duties and 2 days on weekend to take a break and give your body and mental some rest. It is important to not just live for the final project only. There are a lot of things you can do besides your final project. You can do your hobbies such as playing guitar, watching cinema, workout, or anything else that can keep you alive as a human. Remember, your life is more meaningful than just a Final Project and you know that you can't just spend a whole 24/7 on the final project only. If you are tired of working on the Final Project, that's normal. Everyone does it. Just take a break. No need to rush, just take it slow and enjoy the ride.
3. You need something to hold on
I remember what my friend says about running the relationship. He says that a person who has a relationship with someone can't do romantically things every day every time. There must be a time when the chemistry seems stable and no more romantically things happen between them. But, the biggest key to how the relationship can sustain longer is something they hold on to each other. So was the Final Project. Most people lost their motivation for Final Project because they lost direction and didn't have something to hold on to. As simple as you want to make your parent proud of you, financial limitations, and the urgent to work as fast as you can, can be something to hold on to.
4. Talk with your friends and support system
We are social creatures that can't live alone. We interact at least with one person per day such as ordering food from the nearest restaurant is one interaction. Even though the final project is an individual task to be done, we still need someone in our life. Having a friends and support system is one thing that can be your survival kit fight for the final project. Not just about discussing something, but we can also share each other pain and feels relief after that. We can express our emotions that have been pent up and delayed when working on the Final Project. Maybe they can't directly help your Final Project, but they can help heal you mentally and physically that have been drained by the Final Project and give you some booster for the next works.
Few hours before 2nd Milestone deadline, 25% work, 75% chit-chat and play
5. Never compare yourself with others
If you ever feel why you can't do your final project as fast as your friends, that's okay. Everyone has their own pace. They work on their final project quickly because they knew that the scope of their project is bigger than most people. Remember, everyone's final project scope is different and you can't compare your project with the others. You can't compare an apple with a banana. Every final project has a different struggle and has different parameters to measure the progress of the final project. So, just focus on your final project and finished all your final project's to-do list. You are just gonna blame yourself and not appreciate what you have done if you focus on comparing your works with others.
6. Routine guidance with your supervisor
This can be one of the biggest factors for your success in the Final Project. If you have routine guidance from your supervisor, believe me, you will be pushed to finish and doing some progress. After getting some guidance, you will get a boost to finish your final project because you got some suggestions and solutions from your supervisor. If you are lucky enough to get the regular routine guidance, that's a big plus for you (I'm grateful I had the regular routine guidance every week). But if your guidance is not routine, you can just be disciplined with yourself by regularly scheduling the guidance with your supervisor every week or every two weeks. Don't be afraid of your supervisor. Just assume that they are your partners, not your boss. Partners will encourage and criticize you hard because they knew the critics will help you grow better than before. All decision is in your hands.
7. Set your goals and measure your productivity
How do you feel after you write some code and it works? or after you get the job you wanted? It is satisfying, right? Setting goals for yourself can be some trick to boost your mood and motivation while working on the Final Project. If you don't set your goal and work without anything to achieve, it will be boring because you have no short-term motivation for it. Setting the target can be a trick as the short-term motivation that can bring you to work 100% for it in a certain period. You can also measure your productivity such as how much time spent on the work or how many features you have finished today. I recommend you to use apps such as Toggl Track to measure your effectiveness and how much time spent on the Final Project.
8. Pray to God and ask for His Guidance and Power
One more thing, you can't survive this final project alone. Well, technically it is an individual project but it didn't. You are guided by your supervisor and sometimes you discuss it with the other student. There are times when you will feel tired and lose motivation and direction. You should ask for blessing from God too and ask for his guidance and power because it is a spiritual matter and it impacts your works in the future. Don't forget to pray to God because God will give you the power to finish your works and help you direct your thinking and way. Trust me, you can't just rely on yourself and thinks that all your work is completed all by yourself. There is a lot of factor outside there which is can't be described in logical ways, it is God's work for us and we should pray and stay communicating with Him.
Other Short Tips & Trick for Final Project
There are other short tips and tricks for you all readers about the final project that had not been mentioned above.
1. Pick the topic that you loved the most
2. Background checking about your candidate supervisor and their specialization
3. Pick carefully your partner if you wanted the capstone project
4. You need to know what you are capable of
5. Make your supervisor satisfy and support you throughout the time
6. Make your desk as comfortable as you want
7. Justify everything you did in the Final Project
8. Done one by one
9. A good final project is a completed final project
That's all I wanted to share about the final project. For you all readers who will or are fighting for the final project, I wish you all the best in your Final Project. Please let me know if you have any opinion about the final project, and we can have a chit-chat and discuss it (I love to know anything from the other's point of view). Don't hesitate to ask me if you wanted to know more about how I fight for the final project. Cheers!
A moment after Thesis Defense, unofficial S.T. (June 15th, 2022)
July 12th, 2022
Michael Hans
13518056
Computer Science
Bandung Institute of Technology
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