The Dangers of Overextending Yourself- Advice for Overachievers

I’ve always felt a compulsive need to be the best version of myself that I can be. To accomplish that, I relentlessly pursue every journalism opportunity that knocks on my door. There has always been this voice in the back of my head telling me that if I do not have this long, tangible list of internships, clips and journalistic accomplishments, that I am not successful. When I see students with 5-10 internships (usually unpaid because, unlike me, they have parents who can afford to help them pay their bills),  I feel depressed and launch into overachievement mode until I’m overwhelmed, even more depressed and really not accomplishing anything at all. Repeat cycle.
 
When I started in the journalism and psychology programs at the University of South Florida, I jumped full-force into my classes. I also wrote opinion columns for the student newspaper, worked for USF’s communications and marketing department spending 30 hours a week writing news and features stories and shooting photos for the website and started a branch of Her Campus at USF. Then I took broadcast and multimedia journalism classes- way outside my focus and comfort zone of print- to learn the video and editing aspect of the field, in addition to other classes. I attended seminars at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies on my off days and networked for freelance opportunities.  At this point in my life, I am doing all of the above at the same time and had to sit down and re-evaluate my life.
 
 Aspiring journalist or not, many of you out there are stressing over a similar situation. So I came up with a few things you can do to avoid making yourself sick with too many activities. Heed my advice- I wish I had someone tell me this:

• Does anybody remember the movie “Yes Man”? Bad things happen when you say yes to every opportunity that comes your way. You should keep yourself open to different kinds of opportunities but learn when to say no or when to drop one activity so you can adopt another one.

• Focus on what you’re trying to achieve in the long-run and pursue opportunities that are relevant to that. If you’re anything like me, you have a huge variety of interests and want to do everything. You can’t. There is only so much time in the day and a good portion of that needs to be spent eating and sleeping properly. So participate in the activities that will directly boost you up the ladder of your chosen career.

• Speaking of sleeping….get plenty of it. If you are going to keep pretty busy, make sure that you are getting a good night’s rest. I disregarded this piece of advice this last semester and ended up having to attend classes and work through strep throat and bronchitis.

• Find a way to unwind. It’s all fine and good to spend time with friends and family but even that can run you down. Schedule “Me” Time to do whatever relaxes you. Read a Harlequin paperback in the bubble bath, meditate, burn incense, do yoga, listen to your cat purr, whatever floats your boat. Just take an hour occasionally to spend time with yourself. Make sure you silence your cell phone and shut down your laptop. Occasional lack of connection to the rest of the world can help you preserve your sanity.

• Chill out. Don’t compare yourself to your peers and feel like you need to accomplish more than them to be successful. You bring special talents to the table that they don’t, and vice versa. If you spend more time focusing on your classes and extracurriculars and less time worrying about what other people are doing, you’ll be successful. Yes, you’ll have competition in your field but your collection of experiences is uniquely yours. Utilize that.

 
Take advantage of the winter break and come up with a game plan for next semester. If you dread the thought of balancing classes, clubs, work and other activities in the spring, re-evaluate what you are participating in. Your health is more important than being a member of every student organization and the quality of work you produce will be better if you focus on a few important activities rather than everything college has to offer.