In the age of LinkedIn and endless competitiveness in the workforce, it seems as though any moment that you have must be dedicated towards building your resume or making yourself a better employee. However, we are also in the age of poor mental health practices due to the wake of technology and the amount of stress put on us from day to day. In an attempt to become perfect, many collegiettes wear themselves so thin that it becomes impossible to make these improvement. It seems as though we are running on fumes opposed to a full tank, and every mile we go seems to be a risk. For this reason, it can be completely acceptable to give yourself that summer between your two academic years for you to rebuild.
For me, I took a summer after my most involved year yet. What I was able to gain from just two months without a full agenda was astounding. I was able to find the things that made me happy again, take care of my body, and focus on being who I want to be. Here are some things that can be done in a summer off from intense schedules:
1. You can get into routines you have long forgotten to maintain
The first thing that I lose when I get stressed or overwhelmed is my skincare routine. I spent part of my magical summer researching face care routines and then executing one so that I could get in good habits for when the school year began again. Other routines can include a nightly routine, like wearing a face mask and reading a book every night.
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2. You can focus on treating your body right
By running every night or finding a diet that makes you feel more energetic, you can really get better emotional benefits. I find myself to be far more confident and happy when I am able to go on a run every day, but others gain confidence from eating a lot of protein or a primarily vegetarian diet. Whatever works for you, use your summer to find it. Then, you can bring it into the school year.
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3. Find out who you are, really
I started a blog, read all the books that I had wanted to, listened to new music, enjoyed amazing podcasts, visited my best friends, did exercise that made me happy, learned how to make things through art, and more, and throughout all this I somehow found out who I really am and who I really want to be.
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Though it can be intimidating to take a summer for yourself, the end result is actually very beneficial to the original item that you were trying to protect: your resume. With a clear vision of who you are and what you want, it becomes much simpler to pursue what you want with complete confidence. Due to taking a summer for me, I am able to go and tackle this academic year with well-oiled brain and focused dreams. Find what you want by finding you!
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