Whether it’s a final paper, a presentation, or the dreaded final exam, we all have a lot of preparation to do for finals week. I want to wish you the best of luck as we enter this difficult time, as well as warn you of some common pitfalls.

1. Checking Facebook
If you’re Facebook friends with anyone besides your mom and your Farmville-addicted Aunt Bertha, you should not be “checking” Facebook during your study session. Why? Because checking becomes scrolling, scrolling becomes clicking, clicking becomes reading, reading becomes commenting… It’s a slippery slope, my friend.

2. Studying with friends
You have a big essay test on sociology to study for. It’s so tedious poring over your notes, highlighter in hand. But then you remember: your friend down the hall is in the same class! Wow, you guys should totally study together! No. Resist the temptation. Unless you’d rather gossip all evening than get a good grade on your final.

3. Having a snack
Did you ever read “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” as a kid? Well, you’re no better than that mouse. If you give yourself a cookie, you’ll realize you can’t type and eat at the same time, so you’ll want to take a break. And if you take a break, you’ll be bored, so you’ll want to watch a YouTube video while you eat. And we all know how many tantalizing links pop up after one of those.

4. Going to all the “study breaks”
They call them “study breaks,” but we all know what they really are: procrastination parties. One or two may be harmless; they might even give your brain that bit of rest it needs. But if you’re showing up for each one from start to finish—and maybe even helping clean up after a few—your procrastination has gone into overdrive.