Put your goals and your reasons for working towards them on paper. A biology student might find it easy to become tired and discouraged in her studies. Remembering why she is in school – because she wants to develop life-saving drugs or be a teacher like the one who first inspired her – is a powerful motivator. Tape your goals to the wall of your office, to your computer, or to your bedroom or bathroom mirror. Keep them in a place where you’ll be frequently reminded of them. This will keep focused and stay on track. Having a large and specific goal can motivate you more than a series of smaller goals. At the same time, however, your central ambition might sometimes seem far away or like an impossibly huge task. Don’t let yourself be overwhelmed. This sort of thinking is known to kill motivation and lead people to abandon projects. Move the goalposts when you feel this way. If you are writing a novel, for example, put the big picture to the side for a while and work on the current chapter or on revising 20 pages per day. Focusing on small, concrete tasks will move you ahead incrementally and help you finish what you have started. Chronic procrastinators sometimes need more concrete incentives. Set performance standards and reward yourself. The deals can be small or large. Treat yourself to a short break once you have finished some work. Did you ace your year-end exams? That calls for a bigger reward: take a weekend off to celebrate with your friends. Try to use inducements that will motivate you to follow through. Stop and think: what is absolute best that can happen if you go through with your plans? What is the absolute worst? If you are really committed to a goal, remind yourself of how much you potentially stand to gain by following through or how much you potentially stand to lose by failing. Weight the two. What can you expect from applying for jobs in your dream field of architecture? What is the worst that can happen if it doesn’t pan out? Most times the worst-case scenario boils down to fear – fear of failure, fear of rejection, or fear of regret – while the upside promises very tangible benefits.
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One-sentence summary -- Write down your goals. Move the goalposts. Make a deal with yourself. Consider the best-case and worst-case scenarios.


If you're only going to use a portion of your sliced bread, it's best to defrost that portion only. Thawing out an entire loaf of sliced bread when you only need a few slices will require you to either consume the rest of the loaf or refreeze it.  Refreezing bread repeatedly can dry the bread out, making it hard and/or stale. Set aside as many slices as you'll need to defrost and save the rest in the freezer. If the slices are stuck together, you can try using a clean fork or knife to gently pry them apart. Take the slices you've chosen to defrost and arrange them on a plate. Most permanent kitchen dinnerware is safe to microwave; if you're not sure, check the bottom of the plate, as manufacturers will stamp some kitchenware as being microwave safe.  Do not cover the bread. Simply arrange your slices on a plate with a little space in between each slice. Some bakers recommend wrapping frozen bread in a paper towel before microwaving. Make sure the plate can safely be microwaved. Avoid using disposable plates or anything made of plastic. While most loaves of bread will not defrost well in the microwave, sliced bread can be microwaved effectively. As the bread thaws, the starch molecules in each slice will form crystals, which can draw out any moisture that was previously in the bread (called retrogradation). Using a microwave allows the crystals to break down inside the slices of bread so that each piece is soft and warm.  Set the microwave on high power. Heat the sliced bread in your microwave for increments of 10 seconds. Check on the slices after 10 seconds before adding more time in the microwave. It should not take more than 15 to 25 seconds for most microwaves to defrost sliced bread. However, there may be some variance in defrost time, depending on your particular microwave. Do not microwave bread for longer than a minute, as this will probably overheat it. Make sure the bread isn't too hot before eating. Be aware that microwaving bread is likely to make it either overly chewy or hard and stale. This is because the bread loses its water content as the microwave turns that water into vapor, which leaves the bread. If you don't have a microwave or would rather not use one, you can defrost frozen bread in a toaster oven. This method may not work well for whole loaves of bread, though, so it's best to only use toaster ovens for slices of bread.  Adjust the setting to "defrost" or "frozen" to warm up sliced bread from the freezer. As always, make sure the bread hasn't gotten too hot while toasting.
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One-sentence summary --
Thaw out as many slices as you'll need. Arrange the slices on a microwave-safe plate. Use a microwave to warm the frozen slices. Heat up frozen slices of bread in a toaster oven.