Getting into college is hard on its own, but working through it is even harder. Managing the stress of schoolwork with any jobs you might have is made harder if you’re trying to hit the gym, too. It’s easy to just miss things and give up on the goals you want to pursue when things get hard. However, as a sophomore, I’ve come across a few tips and tricks that have improved my ability to juggle all these common factors of college.
Jobs
Unless you have the fortune to not have to work vigorously during college, you’ll have to find a job — or even two. The first thing to remember is to never make work your entire life. You might have three jobs, but never let those three jobs consume every hour of the week. Allow yourself breaks and even days between shifts. Second, remember to allow yourself gratuity with every shift. Give yourself a couple of free hours after work, or if you work evening shifts like me, don’t assign yourself homework after work. There’s nothing more discouraging than knowing you have homework after a grueling five-hour shift.
Jogging
I’ve written a lot about the gym, cardio and its benefits for me in college. Some days the only thing I look forward to is going to the gym or working out, and it gets me through classes. However, I completely understand that’s not the case for everyone and it’s hard to get to that point where it’s an incentive. When I began working out, I never wanted to step foot back in the gym every time I left. One thing to remember, then, if you’re trying to also get into the gym during college, is allowing yourself the grace to not pursue it every day. If you have to take a day or two off because of a tough test requiring studying or even just a tough week that’s taken a physical toll on you, allow yourself that. The only way you’ll get through the four years of college is to take it one day at a time and stress less about the extras, like going to the gym.
Jotting
This section is about schoolwork and the pressure it puts on college students. Some students have up to six classes. That kind of workload can be harsh on your mental, physical and spiritual health. Though it’s largely common knowledge, allow yourself breathers between school work projects or assignments. Don’t push it all into one night when everything is due; rather, spread it out over the entire week.
Personally, I’ll go through all my assignments on Sunday and plan the week out for each day and what I need to work on and finish that day. It sounds simple and likely done before, but it allows so much stress release because you don’t need to worry, especially about due date pressure, since everything has been planned. At least find what works for you and stick to it. Good grades are found through consistency, showing up and productivity. So long as you have those elements, or are even just striving towards them as best you can, you’ll be set up for success.
Long Story Short
College is a marathon, and you’ll never get through it sprinting. That’s why it’s so important to allow yourself grace, breaks and gratitude throughout every day. You’re already here, so you’re already off to a good start. Never let yourself stress too much about any one thing, you already have so much on your plate anyway. Just be as productive as you can, work for as much money as you can and give your best effort.