One of the greatest downfalls of college students is that they do too much too fast and they end up drowning in all this work that came from God knows where. The greatest lesson I ever received in life was realizing that I was not butter. Stay with me here, I'll explain.

When I first came to college I didn't have a major so I was aimlessly wandering around a campus with no future goals set in mind and slightly panicking about going back home for the holidays to family that would definitely ask what I was doing with my life, and my response would be "living in a cardboard box with my degree how about you, Linda?"

So, like any other kid that just got exposed to total freedom with no restrictions, I went crazy. I joined ALL THE THINGS. I made ALL THE FRIENDS (and enemies). Suddenly, I had no time to think, only to do.

Nobody told me there was a difference between being productive and filling up every second of your day so you don't have time to freak out about not having any real goals in life.

This is where the butter comes in.

I was spreading myself out so thin that any pressure that came to me was chaotic, I never had time for my friends/enemies, I couldn't enjoy myself at home because stress would follow me. I was very melted and spread out like butter.

The main lesson is this

You are a human, not a diary product. You cannot spread yourself thin and be ok, it's not healthy.

So, my challenge to you is to keep yourself in one piece, prioritize what is really important to you and what is actually going to help you in the long run. There's a fancy word for this its called SELF CARE.

Self-care is any sort of action or activity that you do just to keep yourself from going insane. It could be anything, whether it be locking yourself in a closet and avoiding responsibility for a while or a vacation just to ease your mind and prevent yourself from ripping your hair out.

Without self-care, you will eventually encounter burnout. Burnout is when you push your body well past its absolute limit and it begins to shut down on you. You can feel empty and incapable of caring about important things because you are just that worn down. It can take a huge toll on your mental health and is not meant to be "toughed out". It is literally your body telling you, "pls stop".

You always have to remember that your #1 priority is you, nobody else. Don't be butter. Don't melt. Be you.