You can use college to lay the path for the future, so you have none regrets later. Most of what you do in your collegiate years and the habits you pick up on will stick with you, making the situations you will run into later seem more familiar. It will be much easier to cope with incidents with the help of your years in college as practice.
The balance you set for yourself each year should only get better in time. Don’t get hung up over any moments where you fail to do so as those moments are expected and almost always bound to happen to everyone.
From the time management to task planning, self-care, money management, networking, and relationships, there’s no way you’ll get that all balanced each year or semester.
Read on to learn how to make the best out of your collegiate life.
1. Life Is About Juggling Between Work and Play, So It’s College
Time management is always a crucial and important skill to have which is emanated well in your college years.
From your classes to studying, to sports, and your social life, you’re bound to pick up on the concept of time management and task planning through constant trial and error. The same way you’re able to get fired for failure to comply with attendance in a job, you can fail a course for the same reason as well in college.
The way you balance both work and play throughout your college years may well determine the way you will continue to do the same after graduating so repeat the good habits and learn from every error.
2. Your Body Needs Attention, too
Speaking of good habits, don’t forget to do the same with the way you take care of yourself on campus. There’s no doubt that college is stressful. Whether or not you choose to live on campus, your activities and studying of heavy material courses can take a toll on your body.
Ever heard of the Freshman 15?
It is an expression used to refer to the average 10-15lbs that students gain during their first years in college. Aside from eating well and staying active, you shouldn’t avoid routine check-ups during these years either. Guys tend to lose sight of certain self-care habits when are away from home.
Keep in mind that this is beyond what you consume but also includes the physical examinations by doctors, dentists, and even eye doctors. Do not procrastinate with the health issues. Maintain your health status so that this habit carries on even after you graduate.
3. Managing Money Is the Ultimate Adulting Task
One of the biggest things you need to understand and learn throughout these years in college is money management. Maybe you have most of your expenses covered, and your scholarship covers your tuition, but your future success relies on what you have allowed yourself to learn.
Nowadays there are plenty of apps with guides and tips that help you spend, save and budget. Before touching your money at all, it is critical that you budget first, by setting aside what is yours and is not yours to spend. In this process it is important for you to set aside your expenses, keeping in mind the ones that fluctuate, along with emergency fund money. This gives you a better sense of how much you have to play around with without having to worry in case something serious comes up.
Apps like Mint help to make budgeting easier by creating folders with fixed budgets. You can link your bank account, so the amounts stay accurate.
It’s never too late to lay the groundwork for your financial literacy, and college, being an entry point into an adult life, makes a perfect place to start.
4. Collegiate Life Can Bring You Invaluable Connections
As hectic as working while still in school may seem, it can be critically important and useful. Although you are only an undergrad, being in school gives you a competitive edge over many other applicants.
There are a lot of companies that work with schools, setting internship programs where students can either work unpaid or paid for a short amount of time and earn a certain amount of credits. This gives room for growth for students who are still learning the material in school by offering them ways to learn more as they work, making it a more beneficial work experience. Being an undergrad gives you the chance to network, making valuable connections with both mentors and students who share those same interests.
College may help you attain a great deal of work experience in your field before even getting a degree.
You may have the opportunity to shadow people and have business mentors show you the ins and outs of the field you are interested in before making it a full commitment as your choice of study. These opportunities help put your foot in the door to your career goals, at times, by giving you a job before graduating.
If your workload doesn’t allow you the time to do this during the fall and spring semesters, it would be a great idea to use the summer and holiday breaks to leverage these options and earn money while building important and valuable connections along the way.
5. Relationships Shouldn’t Step in The Way
Another part of college that guys can’t avoid is the women. With so many of them, all over campus, in the parties and social events, make it even harder to miss them.
There’s no real reason to avoid them at all. In fact, being in a relationship can be helpful towards your studies, having a partner there to help you as they go through the same experiences can be relieving. However, too much attention and focus on these relationships can be distracting and may even cause you to fail exams. Falling in love can sometimes be unavoidable but it is possible and important that you learn to balance this with your academic stance with the school.
If love isn’t your issue, and you are just looking out for your reputation with women, always keep in mind that your reputation as a student and responsible adult is a lot more important. This is also where time management and proper task planning come in handy.
6. You Should Always Enjoy the Experience
We all make mistakes, so embrace them and learn from them. The great difference between college and the real world post-graduation is the number of chances you get for do-overs (not that I am encouraging repeating courses at all). However, you shouldn’t beat yourself up over a bad grade when most colleges give you chances to try again. Don’t forget to not only learn from the mistakes but also enjoy the overall experience. Make connections and thrive.
This moment in your life, no matter how long your years will be in college, will only happen once.
Enjoy every bit as much as you can.
It’s helpful to use a good exam grade as an incentive to go out or a passing grade in the class as an excuse to party or celebrate. Once you get the hang of prioritizing work and play, be sure to bask in the ambience of your play time and make it memorable.
Don’t knock yourself down even more for any failure to get things right. Taking advice from alumni, parents, counselors and even current seniors can help you can make the most out of the experiences you will attain, preparing you for the future.
As long as you keep these things in mind and enjoy it all while it lasts, you should be set not only for your time in college but for the future as well.
Good luck to you!
