When you're a guy in college, one of the last things on your mind, it seems, is maturity. From the moment you first step onto that campus, to your first class, all the way until your final exam of the semester; worrying about whether or not you are maturing mentally is just not a priority. Being a college student comes with a surfeit of worries and adding any more to that unnecessarily is counterproductive. Yet, out of all the things you could possibly worry about as a guy in college - I personally feel that if you were to improve on this one aspect of your life, you will find that the rest of your college life will yield better results.
One of the common misconceptions about growing up is that: the older you get, the more mature you get as well. We may think it because that is the way it is portrayed in movies and even in our own lives - those we may look up to - as they became older, so did their level of maturity. However, it is important to know that this is not reality. The truth is: maturity is a constant choice. As we go throughout our days, we must make choices with how we will react and perceive different things and circumstances. Are we going to respond like we are fully grown or are we going to respond like we are still kids? Though it may seem like a daunting thing to have to be consciously aware of how we react, it is something that we never stop doing.
Whether or not we see it now, the more we choose to act mature, the more we find our lives fall into place. To me, maturity is the act of being intentional as well as finding balance - a balance of when to be serious and when to be laid back.
When you are intentional with others, you find your relationships strengthening. No longer are you known as the guy who can never give an honest answer, now you show others that you take responsibility for the actions that you make and the repercussions that may or may not follow them. And when you find the balance of when to be serious and when not to be - you find yourself being able to buckle down when it comes to your classes and studying and relaxing when you are with your friends and family.
Even in relationships that you will undoubtedly engage in throughout college will be able to go a lot smoother if you choose to be genuine about it rather than playing games and breaking hearts. Why not actually try, to be honest with the girl you're interested in enough to respect her and her heart and end it if you aren't serious about it so she can move on rather than lead her on until you destroy her trust in people? It really isn't that difficult. Let your 'yes' be yes and your 'no' be no.
At the end of the day, though, the choice lies within you. Each and every one of you who find yourself reading this has your own decision to make. No one can make it for you and no one can force you to follow through on it. You can literally just pretend you never read this and go on about the rest of your life. Although, I want you to know that if campus lack one thing, it is mature guys. Very often do you hear about how college guys are the absolute worst because all they have are ulterior motives and love to play games - the list honestly just goes on and on. It is time to break the stigma and start acting more mature and make a better name for ourselves. Not only for ourselves, but for others. The world needs more intentional, mature people.
And let it start with us.