1. What are your biggest values and how do you currently see them prioritized?
By truly knowing what is most important to you, you can accomplish anything and everything the right way for you. The best way to create goals and plan to reach them is by making sure that no matter what you do and spend time on, it all aligns back to your core values. You should spend just enough time on each activity in the order you prioritize how they add value to your life. At the end of the day, if what you’re doing isn’t adding to your mental and physical happiness, girl it’s not worth it. You’re only young once, and if there’s anything I’ve learned it’s that whatever it is you’re doing, it better be making you feel good on the inside and out. What you do and how you feel doing it will determine what kind of person you are that day, that week, and quite possibly the next few years to come. So make sure you spend time on things that add up to the values you stand for and truly show who you want to be remembered for.
2. Why are you choosing the classes and activities you’re choosing?
Reflecting on the “Why?” behind the things you end up choosing is crucial to understanding and narrowing down if they’re the right things to do at the moment. Consider how they will benefit you not only professionally, but most importantly in the long run. Are you doing these things because you feel you have to build your resume or do you feel truly passionate about making a real change in that position or role you’re about to take on? There are so many great things to get involved with in college, so make sure to choose spending your time on ones you really care about, or you’ll drive yourself nuts trying to keep up with all the ones you’ll probably end up forgetting about anyways.
3. What are you doing for fun to add to your happiness and keep a healthy state of mind?
Never forget to think about how you will make time for fun. College can be some of the best years of your life if you keep everything you do throughout it in balance. As you grow up, you realize your definition of fun changes. Make sure you know when you’re in need of some fun “Me” time, in replacement of some “Party” time. Both are important aspects of your college years, but knowing when you need to say no and yes to the other is never something you should be embarrassed about. In fact, you should be proud to know yourself enough to admit it, and even plan with the ones you love to share in the time you choose to do whatever it is you’re calling “fun” in the moment.
4. Who are you going to spend most of your time with, and why?
Make sure to know what friends are worth keeping around and consistently calling up to bring a smile to your face, and the ones who maybe are nice enough to just keep as acquaintances. Reflect on who truly brings out the best in you, and encourages where you’re headed and aiming to go as long as they know it’s what you need to be doing to be happy. As nice as it can be to be everyone’s friend, it’s important to distinguish the ones who truly give you the support you need in your day-to-day life, especially so you can make sure to give the same back to them. After all, you’re not the only one going on this rollercoaster ride we call life.
5. What’s your end goal?
Knowing this always helps to keep you excited and working towards something bigger than your daily and weekly goals. Even if you don’t know 100% what it is right now, make a list of all the things you’re currently curious about or would maybe like to get experience in. Then, rank them out and start aiming to accomplish each one in the order that you prioritize them in. This is a great way to figure out what you love from what you hate, which are both equally important things to learn about yourself. It’ll help you waste less time on the things you discover you don’t care to do, to distribute that time that can be added to the ones you may still end up loving.