Just a little over a week ago, the ball dropped and we said goodbye to 2016 for good. Some were happy to see it go, others wanted to hang on to it for just a while longer. No matter how you feel, for many of us, 2017 brings something we can no longer ignore: our graduation.
It's a terrifying thought. The end of our wild and crazy, anything-goes college years are a mere few months away. These are the years that have changed and shaped so much of us, pushed us, and challenged us to our very core. It's unsettling to think about leaving the place, and the people, that have seen you through it all.
In the face of it all, it's important to remember a few things to keep you sane in the upcoming months as our time in college comes to a close.
1. Keep your friends close.
Lean on each other for support when the stress gets too much. Appreciate the time you have with them now before things change.
2. Find your balance and maintain it.
Constant up-until-3-AM Netflix binging nights should probably be scaled back; it's a little hard to coordinate a productive adult life when you have a 12-episode-streak hangover. Sleep is your friend. So is some fresh air, exercise, and a couple of Netflix episodes per night--but also remember that balance doesn't look exactly the same for everyone, so dedicate time to finding what works for you.
3. Utilize your resources.
For most of my life, my top tactic to dealing with something scary and intimidating (i.e., applying to college, getting my license, etc etc) was to just avoid it until the last possible second, creating insane amounts of pressure and more than one unnecessary anxiety attack. Don't put off your future. Talk to your professors, go to the career center. You don't have to have your 5-year plan mapped out. But maybe get the first couple of steps in mind--there's literally nothing to lose from being prepared.
4. Take nothing for granted.
Don't even take the dining hall food for granted. I swear to god we're all going to miss it in some bizarre way by this time next year.
5. Stay open minded.
Your future can always change at the drop of a hat; oftentimes for the better. If an opportunity for an internship or job you'd never really considered comes along, don't just brush it away if it doesn't fit in perfectly with the plan. Consider all of your options. There is no wrong time to do something new, even at the very end of your college career.
6. Remember that you made it this far.
You stare down your last semester of college and all the hurdles it's about to throw at you and think, "I can't do it. Oh, my God, it's really going to kill me this time." Spoiler alert: it's not. Every single time you freak out, think you can't make it, you did. Over and over and over and look where you are--almost at the finish line.
7. Remember that you're going to be just fine.
Take uncertainty by the horns. Life is a grand adventure, and yours is just getting started. You can't tell the end of a book by the first page, can you?
You have pushed past all of the uncertainty, the anxiety, the pain, and the plain bats**t crazy. Let's be honest, if you made it through college, you're going to be alright.
