College is the greatest time of your life and it is also the toughest time of your life. The college shall push you mentally and physically. If you are determined to succeed in college you will find yourself pushing yourself to levels you never knew possible. At the end of it all, it is definitely worth it. However, with all this hard work we all run the risk of burning out. Burning out is very real and it does not happen to people who are not up to the challenge of hard work, rather it is more likely to happen to people who go all out. Burning out is nothing to be ashamed of, but it is still something that you should do your best to avoid. Burning out is never pleasant, especially when the semester end exams are on your head.
- Fitter bodies lead to stronger minds
College is a never-ending roller coaster. Who has the time to squeeze in a jog or a 45-minute session at the gym? Hell, there are days one does not move from the chair for 5 to 6 hours! However fitness is very important for success, it is something that the top business schools actually teach their MBAs.
Exercise leads to the release of endorphins, the body’s natural chemical that puts you in a good mood and helps to stave off stress. Not only that but with a regular exercise schedule you will be less prone to mental fatigue and have better concentration levels, thus allowing you to achieve more in less time.
Plus regular exercise will help to prevent weight gain, which in the long run can add to your list of woes.
- Reward yourself with regular breaks
Studying continuously can exhaust you. It is recommended that you study in one-hour blocks that is 50 minutes of study and 10 minutes of break time. Also when you take a break try to stay away from your smartphone for often one loses track of time when checking Facebook or tweeting.
- Do not indulge in procrastination
In college you will have a huge amount of work, more so if you are doing a part-time job. Thus you will have to do something on the priority basis and some you will be able to defer. However, the keyword people forget here is “some” and defer everything. That leads to a huge pileup of work and then you eventually find yourself staying up for a couple of nights straight fueled by coffee catching up on all the work!
Prepare a schedule and stick to it. Also, defer work in the worst case possible. Your first priority should be tackle tasks as they come. If you don’t have learning environment around, find one but you can’t afford to waste a minute of this crucial phase of your life.
- Don’t lose perspective of what is truly important
In college, your grades are important no doubt about it. But there comes a time when you have to decide what cost are you willing to pay for a good grade? Sometimes in life, it is okay to not be the best or even be average. Grades do matter but they are not everything. Your mental and physical health is more important, and as long as you have these you can always bounce back. So sometimes settle for less, for it is just one battle and the war is not over yet.
