Ever since I was in high school, I wanted to be the girl who was known for doing it all while still having my life in order. I have always been an overachiever, and I probably always will be. I will always strive to be perfect, but I am slowly realizing that I am not Superwoman. I have found out that no matter how hard I try to fit everything into my schedule that I want to do, I can’t do it all. I’ve learned that it’s OK to say no to people if I don’t have the time or care about what they’re asking about. Even if I did have time to do that task that they ask me to do but I don’t care about it at all, it’s still OK to say no. I knew that the task wouldn’t get done like it should get done.
When I was in high school, I was involved in almost anything and had everything organized. Things were great in high school, but then college hit. I knew when I came to UTM that I wanted to be involved. I wanted my name to be known across campus as the girl is involved in everything. My freshman year, I wasn’t as involved as I wanted to be because I wanted to get a feel of what the college course load would be like. I only joined one organization, but I was heavily involved in it.
My sophomore year came around, and I joined a sorority and became an officer in a few organizations. I knew that I was not Superwoman, but maybe I could still be Supergirl. I thought that I could do everything, and then I took Biology. I realized that I would actually start having to study to make a passable grade in this class. It finally hit me that maybe I should cut back on what I do and redirect some of that time to study for classes. I never had to actually study for a class like I did for this one. I gained some perspective in my priorities. As it turns out, this perspective only lasted like for two months because I took on like four other leadership positions on campus because I thought that I was Supergirl again. It’s great that I get to have these opportunities to serve my university, but I should have said no to some of the positions that I took.
Now that I am in my junior year of college, I have really understood that it’s OK to say no because I just can’t handle everything. Sometimes I’m so stressed that I dream about what I need to be doing instead of sleeping. I’m not complaining because I did something when I wanted to do something else. I’m telling you this so you don’t end up like me, dreaming about studying for classes or making lists about what you need to do.
My advice to any person who wants to be involved on campus and in organizations is to choose two or three organizations/clubs that you love the most and join them. If you want to be involved in those organization/clubs, choose one in which you have a leadership position. If you feel like that you can take on another leadership position in another organization, then take that second leadership position only if you can handle it with your classes. The only reason I advise this is because you should be able to have some free time to hang out with your friends or have some time for yourself throughout the day. At the end of the day, it’s always OK to say no.
Photo courtesy of Unsplash.