As humans we have goals. We strive to reach them to the best of our abilities. When we set a goal, we work hard for it. Simple as that, but things don’t always go as planned.

College has its obstacles. It is just a huge bowl of stress, work, time management, and some fun. College students have their own system of surviving. Some students have a planner, some just wing it, and some people are just on top of everything. No matter what your system of surviving may be, there’s always the possibility of a flaw popping up.

For the past six years I’ve used a planner, organized my google calendar, and scheduled everything (even food breaks within the day). This system may sound perfect but as I’ve said before, systems have flaws. I work hard for what I intend to reach. I set goals each day. I try to do my best, but it’s not always going to go my way. And that’s totally okay. For the past few years I’ve put so many expectations upon myself that every time I don't meet those expectations my perception of myself diminishes. Bringing yourself down will never help, not you not anyone.

When hard work doesn’t pay off, that just reminds you that hard work is not the key. The key is dealing with failure. If you give up right after failing, that’s when you’ve reached the low. Life will be there to throw some curve balls, if you duck or try to catch these balls says a lot about you. It’s not about how you fall, it’s about how you stand back up.

When hard work doesn’t pay off it’s not the end of the world. You knew how hard you worked for it, and that’s all that matters. You did your best, now it’s time to get back up and try again.