Sustainability is defined by Webster’s dictionary as “of, relating to, or being a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.”

What I want to touch on is the hard lives of design students and professional designers. It’s always go, go, go, design at all times. Design school is rough, with deadlines and teachers breathing down your neck. Not to mention a little friendly competition from other design students. And then you graduate to a world where the same competition is coming at you, but now your livelihood is at stake. It’s hard to take care of yourself in this profession.

Design schools (including architecture schools) are some of the most grueling, unsustainable environments in school. Even med schools are realizing they can’t push students to work 80 hour weeks, but yet design students are expected to be in the lab, creating from dawn until dusk.

Here are some tips for design students and pros alike on how to sustain a healthy lifestyle while designing.

1. Organize your time. It’s so easy to get caught up in the creative moment and let it keep going and going. Eventually, you realize that your creative moment ended hours ago, but yet you’re still trying to crank something out. Procrastination is also a big contribution to all-nighters. Get yourself a day planner and write down important deadlines, then work back from there. Try to put in more hours in the beginning of a project so that at deadline you’ll just be polishing, not creating.

2. Take a break. No one’s mind is able to think continuously for 12 hours at a time. Do something else totally mindless, like taking a walk. The outdoors holds lots of design ideas and fresh air can give you a boost of creativity as well. Go see a movie or take a jog down an unfamiliar (but safe) street. Look at the design of the trees, the houses, apartment buildings, etc. Don’t neglect your friends – at least have lunch with them to recharge your batteries and use a different part of your brain.

3. Unclutter your workspace. It’s hard to concentrate when you’re distracted. Remove all but essential items from your desk or work area. Get an ergonomic chair or find a high table or desk where you can stand and work at times. This will help keep your body and mind from stiffening up.

4. Get into an eating, exercising and sleeping routine. Your mind and body work so much better when properly fueled and rested. Exercising helps blood travel through your body and it keeps you alert. Keep healthy snacks at your work space so you aren’t tempted to chow down on candy bars all day, which will just make your blood sugar drop and drain your energy. Sleep even when you have a deadline – you’ll wake up with a clear head and those ideas bouncing around in your head will be clearer in the morning (or after a cat nap).

5. Stand up for yourself and say “no.” Don’t take on projects you don’t have time for. A balanced life is a satisfying life. You don’t need to design 60 or 70 hours a week. If teachers pressure you, try talking to them about all the other pressures in your life and how design fits in. Sometimes, teachers don’t realize how much work you have from other classes or how much pressure you have from part-time work (if you have time to work, that is). You can’t say no to a required assignment, but don’t take on extra credit or a project just to please the teacher if you don’t have the time or desire.

You’ll end up burned out and hating design if you don’t live your own sustainable life. Remember what sustainability means: not depleting or permanently damaging resources. Your mind and your life are the most important resources you’ve got; take care of them.