As a new year begins, it's important that we all remember how to actually survive college. Through two years(ish) now myself, I have come up with a fool-proof formula for making it through the year. My list is long and extensive, but these are my favorite tips.
1: Look on the bright side.
So many people get so discouraged and mad. "I hate this teacher," or "I'm sick of her," or even, "I hate this school!" Well then why the hell are you here...? If you complain all day, yeah. you're damn right, it's all going to suck and you're going to fail and be miserable. Suck it up.
2: SLEEP
If you are granted the God given luxury of time, by all means use it to sleep. Maybe you have thirty minutes to squeeze in a nap, or you have been busy all day and just want to flop into bed a tad early. DO IT. The little extra amounts of time that you can manufacture sleep go a long way. You'll be rested, happier, and well, happier.
3: Walk your own path.
Everyone is at school for one reason: school. Don't be that person caught up in the actions of every single member of their friend group that they hardly have their own life. You're mortgaging your next three houses for this tuition, so do what you came for.
4: Money.... Eh...
Honestly with this one, f*** it. If you got hundreds of dollars pouring into your account each week, or your parents are your bank account, that's great, and I wish I was you. But for everyone else that money is tight, this is a short span of your life. So you blow a ton of money out with your friends, so what? You're here to find a career soon, you'll earn it all back.
5: This is not high school.
Do not be the people who gossip, who create drama, or who simply cause headaches that are not in the mornings, for the others around you. Please.
6: Don't get arrested.
Have the funnest four years of your life, but don't get locked up. I haven't seen any positive benefits of this outcome, so I wouldn't suggest trying it. Seems like a pretty easy one to follow, but I've seen some crazy things happen...
7: Study your a** off
If you get ahead of the game, bang out your work, and have all your classes under control, life gets so much easier, trust me.
8: Midnight snack
Whether you're studying, or out getting drunk with your friends, make sure you have a spot. A spot where you know you can go to eat up time, and eat some pretty good food. *It helps if you have a place as a good hangover recovery spot.*
9: College friends = family
I don't know how this phenomenon happens, but when you step foot on campus, you seem to just know everyone inside and out. Your hometown friends will always be there, holding a special place in your heart, but there's something about spending all day, and living with, brand new people, that brings you all so close so fast.
10: Booze.
You yourself may not be able to legally drink, or you may prefer not to. But some people need the last class on Friday to end right this minute, because college is stressful. Just don't be offended when you hear everyone talking about drinking, it's not that they think it's 'cool,' it's just been a long week/month/semester/day/class/life/whatever.
11: Mental breakdowns happen at all times.
You never know when they will strike or in what form. It could be your roommate, half crawling, half sliding, into your room whispering in a hushed tone (but also somehow screaming. Don't ask) at 4 in the morning that he's dropping out because his math class is ridiculous. It could be someone walking out the door without returning for hours with no contact. Or it could be you, finding yourself in a pile of papers on the floor, literally hundreds of papers, calculating the lowest possible grade you need on the final exam to pull a high enough grade that you receive credit. Just know, they're coming.
12: Absolutely wing it.
This one may be more personal that anything, but it works for me. I spend so much time trying to plan and make certain things go a certain way, that when I don't think at all it works best. May that be procrastination, social events, whatever, I wing it.
13: Breathe.
Relax, it's going to be fine. One assignment or test that you screwed up isn't going to kill you. Anything in your college education that makes you too overwhelmed with stress and anxiety probably is not going to matter after you receive your diploma, so stay calm, and college.
