You probably find that well-meaning people are always telling you to study hard and get the best qualifications you can because you only get one chance, and it is true. What you achieve academically during your college days can follow you around for the rest of your life. You might as well make the biggest effort to reach your full potential.
On the other hand, you’re young and you’re enjoying your first taste of independence after living at home. The good news is that you can reach your full potential and have some fun at the same time, assuming you can strike the perfect college/life balance. Not sure where to start to get in the flow? Here are some top tips to help you get started in having a better college-life balance this year.
Keep Study and Leisure Separate
Maybe you can set a rigid schedule and treat student time like a 9-to-5 or, if you don’t like those exact hours, do 8-to-4, or 10-to-6. Classes are non-negotiable, so make your private study time sort of official too. Leave music, drinking, and dating till after and don’t mix the two. Yes, that means don’t show up to class after rolling in from a party at 7AM.
Manage Your Money Well
If you get a grant or allowance that you can live on comfortably, that’s good. But there are scholarship options will pay for part or all of your degree, so check them out. Controlling your expenditure means not running to other people for help. Some students get a part-time job, and if you can fit that into your life, go for it. But ultimately, if you can’t afford to go to that gig, don’t go. That’s life and making sacrifices will become the norm.
Maintain Your Mental Energy by Sleeping and Being Active
Get enough sleep and remember, an hour of it before midnight is worth two after midnight. Energy helps with study and with having fun too, and if you’re naturally serious and studious, give yourself a break sometimes. Try not to take a textbook to a party and get some exercise. If you’re not a gym person, walk to college or go for a bike ride in the evenings. Your mind and body will certainly thank you for it.
Learn to Cook & Buy Fresh Ingredients
Some students use their new independence to try things out in the kitchen, and cooking for yourself has several advantages. You know what’s in the dish you’re eating because you put it there so you can regulate the amounts of salt, sugar, and other additives. Most ready meals are full of bad ingredients There may be nothing wrong with monosodium glutamate in itself, but it is not on any dietitian’s list of what you should consume. What you eat can affect your mind as well as your body, and buying stuff to go is more expensive than doing it yourself.
Fruit and vegetables are said to be good for you, and that’s not just a health food freak’s opinion, it’s true. They contain vitamins and minerals that your body needs to function well. They also provide fiber, which can carry plenty of negative ingredients like toxins away out of your system.
Avoid Alcohol
Having a few beers or glasses of wine can relax you, and that plus other drugs may be seen as the fuel that makes the party run, but hangovers, coming down and fatigue are not fun. You don’t have to be a goody-goody, but you want to feel healthy. You can still have a few beers and feel fresh the next day, while again, the secret is getting the balance right.
Drink Enough Water
Many people wonder why they get headaches and don’t consider the fact that they are not taking in enough fluids. Water is like fiber in that respect: it flushes the undesirables out. Dehydration will make you feel bad, and you may not even realize that’s what it is. A good guideline is to drink at least 64oz per day (more if you’re exercising).
Have a Good Time
These may well be the best days of your life, so strike that balance, get the work done, live a little, make friends, and enjoy yourself.