By: Alicia Caffero
Going into college, I lied to myself. I lied through my teeth. I lied so much my teeth fell out and now all that remains is a gummy hole for even more lies to flow. Through all my heinous misbehaviors – all the “those look great’s” and “it’s not you, it’s me’s” – the most deceitful phrase I have ever tried to make true is still, and always will be, “I have time.”
I’m a full-time student with extra classes and a job where I oversee six departments the moment those classes end, sometimes during if there’s an emergency. So it goes without saying that I never have time. If I do, it just means I forgot something. On especially hectic days, my friends have caught me typing in my sleep. Okay, that was a joke but that’s not the point; the point is I have a problem that I refuse to fix. Sitting makes me uncomfortable and it seems I’m most myself when life is taking me three places at once. Despite loving the feeling of a full schedule, after a while, it becomes hard to breathe. Seven quarters, two jobs and an internship later, I’m a junior with plans on graduating a full year early and the moment of truth has come where everything I do matters and when I do it matters even more. And I’m terrified. But because I’m an over-planner with an affinity for lists, I have created some methods to keep up with the madness.
1. Make lists. They’re organized, concise, streamlined and immensely helpful. Make a grocery list. Make a list of homework assignments due. Make a list of the lists you have, whatever it takes to create a tangible representation of all your responsibilities. Also just look at how pretty this list is. Lists are awesome.
2. Make priorities. What are at the top of your lists? What’s treated as an afterthought? Find the things that matter most to you and let the lesser fall to the wayside. (Unless, of course, they’re required. Please don’t ignore your homework. While I would love to put my Duolingo lessons at the top of every list, I know that my “streak” will only last as long as my assignments permit, and that’s the fact of life.)
3. Milestones It may seem simple, but rewarding yourself can keep you sane. Even with something as small as going grocery shopping, there needs to be a reward. Maybe it’s a cigarette or a beer. Maybe it’s your favorite brand of ice cream. The key is moderation. Once you have your ice cream, maybe don’t partake until you knock another chore off your to-do list. It’ll make that strawberry taste like pure, sweet victory.
4. Listen to yourself Once in a while, you may need to hold back. If you’re not sleeping, don’t have time to cook a decent meal and are generally miserable, it might be that time to cut down and relax. There a constant ebb and flow of workloads and what was okay last quarter may become too much in the next. Be wary of that and treat your body right. No one wants to wake up and look in the mirror to find Ego from Ratatouille staring back. Those days never end well, so try and avoid them whenever you can.
5. Last, but most certainly not least, lie. I know I said it was bad, but there’s a reason I still do it. All the milestones, makeshift lists, and methods in the world can’t stop me from lying to myself. If I didn’t, the slippery slope to laziness would drag me back to hell where I came from. And while I do get homesick, I’m not returning without a diploma in my hand. The most important thing is to know your limits and try to push them. Don’t break yourself, but bending limits can make you flexible. If that metaphor doesn’t work for you, just imagine how proud you’ll be after it’s over (and how good it’ll feel when you sit down for the first time in three months.)
Images Courtesy of @carysleroy on twitter