While I was getting good grades in the first year of the university, I was losing connection with myself. The regret of losing all my hobbies made me realize how procrastination can be important too.
Every time I say this, all my friends give me death stares, but I’ll say it again. I wish I procrastinated a little more last year, I wish my grades were a little lower, and I wish I chose that party over that exam. I can just hear their classic “shut up, Myra!” the second they hear this seemingly ungrateful rant.
It’s true that I was once the time management guru, the factory of creativity, the slayer of deadlines. However, I forgot to separate passion from perfection, and slowly began striving for grades instead of enjoying my education, which didn’t end well. In other words, I was exhausted.
When first-year began, I was ecstatic that making art was my education and ready to express my creativity through media production. But all of first semester, I got 4 hours of sleep a night while drowning in assignments. I slowly stopped hanging out with friends, then painting, then watching movies, and the most tragic one – I stopped binge-watching Beyonce music videos. Not one media student on this planet consumed less media than first-year Myra.
During the second semester, it finally hit me that maybe I was a little too hard on myself. And thus, began the journey of dragging myself away from textbooks and towards my one true love – Netflix. But It was a difficult choice between sleep and Netflix.
I realized how hard it can be to get the “What if I fail and my life is over?” voice out of your head. Every time I heard a friend say they didn’t have time to study, it would make no sense to me. My life revolved around not having time for anything because of studying. If this is the case, you need to start flipping some priorities, so here’s my little guide to keeping that sanity!
The first thing to remember is that “free time” in university is an utter lie. There’s a higher chance of One Direction reuniting than you having any free time. Truth is there’s only two types of times: productivity and procrastination. You have to learn how to create free time yourself, around yourself, and for yourself. You keep telling yourself you’ll be free after this assignment and that test but the overlap of things on your agenda remains merciless. Stop telling yourself you’ll do it “after this test” because let’s be real, the only thing that comes after the test is another test. Shocker.
Procrastination is not always a bad word, it’s actually quite essential when it’s done for your mental well being, social life and hobbies. So, if your best friend is trying to make plans, drop everything and GO.
I know a few other friends who’ve struggled with the same problem of over prioritizing education. My best friend once refused to EAT out of deadline stress. It’s not fun having to drag your friend to Salad King and force-feed them after they’ve been up all night and can’t sit straight from the gallons of coffee. So, before your stress overflows and starts stressing your loved ones too, get out of your room.
Speaking of hobbies, don’t forget about them. Personally, on my journey of self-awareness, I picked up a new hobby of home workouts. I began following fitness Youtubers and their workout schedules. When I have something to do every single day on a schedule – because how dare Ms. Perfection herself miss a day – I spent less time at school. See how that works?
Channel your need to be FLAWLESS into being flawless at something else! Of course, the stress relief, fitter body and improved sleep cycle didn’t hurt my love for having this new hobby.
My last piece of advice for you is simple: break a rule, right now. Here’s your sign to skip that reading and go for a walk. Remember to listen to your own body before any deadline reminder email.
If your brain feels like it’s melting, your eyelids are cursing you for not letting them shut and your back has you feeling 80 years old, now is not the time to worry about grammar checking that essay. Especially in pandemic-stricken times like these where nobody’s mental health is at its best, make sure to take care of yourselves and your loved ones.