Most of us have that one thing we did in high school. You played sports, were on the debate team or, like me, were in a band. I’m not talking about some garbage band I starred in to impress the social elite. My thing was concert and marching band with a little bit of winter drumline sprinkled in. Our things gave us friends, provided activities to take part in, taught us much and gave us a place to grow. If you were lucky, your thing helped prepare you for life after high school, on top of all the other benefits that came with it. Being a band kid prepared me for life after high school (AKA college) in these nine ways.

1. I learned the definition and character of perseverance.

High school me wanted nothing more than to have everything handed to me, silver platter and all. Band knocked that unhealthy expectation out of me real fast. I began working for what I wanted, but more importantly, I began understanding how to work for what I wanted. If you have read my other article on how procrastination isn't always a bad thing, you know that I don't enjoy working just to work, but I like working to work better. Productivity hacks are my specialty, and these strategies were first formed in my high school band room. No matter how tired I was, how much homework I had or which show I was behind on, I was going to be at band practice. I remember some days only walking out the door when my director left for the day. While some days were harder than others, no day wasn't worth putting in 150%. Band is where I developed the mindset if something was worth doing, then it was worth doing well. That being said, it also meant there were many times I wanted to be anywhere else but that hot field or stuffy band room with all those crazy loud people. Some days I just had to push through.

I remember one day at band camp (no, it's not one of those stories), I injured my shoulder. The whole band was together practicing, and I was up front in my section, the pit, playing as best as I could while my shoulder was throbbing. The tears were silently pouring down my face from the pain. I didn't stop playing until one of the instructors noticed and forced me to. My level of perseverance had soared so high that I felt what was best for the band was for me to make sure to have my musical part down. That's what I was going to do, come hell or high-water. In this case, it was hell on my shoulder and water leaking from my eyes.

2. I learned how to manage my time.

I was in honors classes and higher. I held office in many clubs, even helped start one. I had other friends, family, and a boyfriend. I wanted to have other adventures outside of all the ongoings of band. And I did. I managed all of them. I struggled a lot at first, especially since we had two solid weeks of band camp where every day was filled with practice. As soon as that was over, it seemed like school was starting the next day. For those first few weeks, I was like a chicken running around with its head cut off. Then things changed.

I took all the schedules from all my classes and extracurricular activities and put them on my phone. That way, I'd always have access to my schedules and could see them in one place instead of having to look at different pages. For a while, I wrote down everything I did in a day so I could see where my biggest time-drainers were. I took that information and limited, or even completely got rid of, those time-sucks. If I had a free moment during the day, I did something I knew I could finish that I would have to do later in the day. That way, if something came up, I had time for it or even had more free time at the end of the day than I should've. My calendar became my best friend, and like any good friend, I fed it. Anytime anything came up, it went on my calendar.

3. I came to understand I can't please everyone, including myself, all the time.

I had lots of things going on in high school, but who doesn't? But if you're trying to do everything all the time, you are going to burn yourself out. Sometimes you just have to let some things go and focus on the things that are most important. There are going to be a lot of people in life who expect things from you including family, a significant other, friends, employers, etc, but you can't always make everyone happy. That includes you, as well. Life is going to give you many opportunities to do what you want to do. It's your job to know when you can partake in those opportunities and when you can't because you have something else more important going on.

4. I began setting high standards and far-reaching goals for myself.

In my experience, most band directors have high standards. They see the potential a student and a band has and wants them to master that potential. Sometimes that comes with sacrifices, though.

Having high standards for myself was something I picked up from my high school band director. Every musical run I couldn't get, she said I could, and there was nothing I hated more in high school than letting my band director, the one person who always believed in me, down. So I took the standards she set for me and tried to raise them. I didn't always make them, but that was okay. The times I did fail, I looked at the failure as a learning experience so I was better prepared next time.

Now when I look at where I am today, I see I've surrounded myself with people who have similarly high standards for themselves. Not only do I push myself, but they push me to achieve my goals, sending me even further in life.