Welcome to college. The four (give or take) best years of your life. I know you have four reading assignments, two essays, and a group project to start working on, but take a minute, breathe, and give me a second of your precious time so I can tell you the four most important things I learned when I was you.

1. Branch Out

Just because your roommate shares half of your living space does not mean that they should share half of your mind. Roommate syndrome is very real; you’ll feel like you have to be connected at the hip but this could not be farther from the truth. Every relationship needs some level of space, whether you’re best friends or barely know each other. You will tire out this friendship based on proximity, and second semester will be rough. You’ll spend most of your time out of your room, lugging bags of changes of clothes to friends’ places until move out day becomes more of a formality than a necessity. This also applies to that friend from high school, that guy who lived down the street, and anyone you knew pre-college. Give them space; it’s just as important for them as it is for you. So meet new people. Join that club that goes base diving on the weekend, or underwater basket weaving, or whatever you want. Push yourself into a group of shared interest and watch friendships grow.

2. Call Home

Whether you’re ten minutes away or across the globe, your family wants to know how you’re doing. Call in-between classes, or on your way back to your dorm. Every spare bit of time you have, they will appreciate. Talk to them about your professor who speaks in one tone and the six-foot tall guy who sat in front of you and blocked your view of the board. Tell them how upset you are about bombing that first test, and how happy you are when you got that A. This is just as much a new chapter of their life as it if yours - their loved one is experiencing so many new, amazing things; take them along for the ride.

3. Make Time For Yourself

You do not have to go to lunch with your whole floor. You do not need anyone to go to the gym with you. Your friends are not crutches to help you awkwardly stumble through your college years; so don’t use them as such. Unless you’re the type of person that loves to listen to 5 other people talk about what they did last weekend while you’re trying to write your American Lit paper, you need to be able to set boundaries of when you need time alone. And there is nothing wrong with time alone - it helps you focus and recharge your batteries. There is absolutely no shame in taking a day off from the pressure and stress of maintaining all of these new college friends to spend some time alone with Netflix.

4. No One Cares

I’m going to tell you one of the biggest secrets about college: no one cares anymore. No one cares that you wore the same outfit last week, or yesterday. No one cares if you wear a Snuggie to class and sleep in the back of the room. No one cares if you ride a unicycle through campus screaming Firework by Katy Perry. College is free territory to try new things, be who you always wanted to be, and make the most of every opportunity you’re given. So never allow any form of peer pressure or self-doubt to keep you from doing anything. Everyone else in college is worried about themselves, which may sound selfish but in reality it’s very important. In high school everyone worried about everyone else, who was dating who and who failed what. In college everyone is so wrapped up in their own minds, focusing on their own future and well being, that they could not be bothered with how you wore sweats to class or how messy your hair is.

So class of 2019, I bestow upon you this advice in hopes that you won’t repeat my mistakes. Make new stories, take pictures as often as you can, and don’t let classes get in the way of college. But you know… still go to your classes. Make the most of everything you can, because sooner than you think, it’ll be time to cross that stage into an even bigger chapter of life. Stay classy my friends.