It’s that time of year again. We’ve all just returned from Spring break, burnt or refreshed. It's also the season for biggest college holiday of the year: St. Patrick’s Day. It’s the one day of the year that a frat boy will roll out of bed at 6 a.m. not to make it to his 8 a.m. class on time, but to crack open a cold one with the boys before the sun has even had a chance to shine. It’s a marathon of drinking for the average college student, and to make matters worse this year it’s on a Saturday, which means there won’t be classes to hold students back from going hard all-day long.

At my campus, an average student should expect to hear about joint or lone frat parties that are held morning, day, and night and then maybe expect a 50/50 chance of making it to the bars (which if you’ve made it that far, you deserve a medal). With all that being said, it is up to you what you wish to do with that information.

As a freshman in college, I went from going out one night every other week at the beginning of my first semester to going out Wednesday through Saturday (four nights) by the time I left for Winter break. My second semester I’d cut down to three. Last semester, two. And now in my second semester sophomore year, I only like to go out one night a week, preferably Saturday.

Was going out that often freshman year good for my health? Probably not. Am I living a more balanced life now prioritizing school and a healthy lifestyle but still making time for fun? For sure!

I still don’t regret going out that much freshman year because it’s normal for students away from home for the first time in a new environment to try taking on new things. For you, that could have looked like my freshman year or it could have looked completely different (or could be if you’re still in your first year). The point I’m trying to make here is that it’s normal to boomerang between different extremes trying to find your perfect balance between responsibility and fun that will bring you success while still bringing you happiness.

Today, I am most certain that the lifestyle I’m living fits my current goals for success and happiness, but that doesn’t mean that your ideal lifestyle at the moment is the same as mine. Why is that? Well besides the obvious that we all have different priorities, it is what those priorities are built upon — values. Most of our values won’t actually ever change, because we adopted them from a young age; however, the experiences we transition through especially during our young adult life will shift around our rankings and prioritization of those values.

For example, one of my larger values is being super socially involved. I’m involved in a social sorority, a professional business fraternity, the honors community, and The Odyssey, but starting as a freshman I didn’t have all these groups and connections. Instead, I became socially involved by going out, which you can meet many new people through. Gradually as I joined these organizations, my network grew quickly and my social bucket was starting to overflow.

My purpose in going out to meet new people quickly diminished because my value for being super socially involved was already being fulfilled. So why do I continue to still go out once a week? Other values that’s purpose also existed in going out was over-shined by my value of being super socially involved. These other values still exist for me, such as letting loose my pent-up energy from the week. It’s nice to have a night out to force you to forget your pressures from the previous week and the week yet to come, but I don’t need more than one night a week to do so. Do you see the balance yet?

Let’s look at another end of the spectrum. Another extremely large value I hold is enjoying my academic success. I prefer to view academia as a gift rather than a burden. By viewing newly learned knowledge as a gift, I may spend more time viewing the material and studying it, but it leaves me feeling up-to-date with my classes and extra-gifted by receiving a better grade.

It’s by my perception of this value that I don’t feel bummed staying in doing homework than going out with my friends. Maybe you don’t have this value and that’s okay! If you don’t have this value and maybe your workload is quite light, then where your larger values do lie are areas to give your time to in one way or another.

Balance is different for every individual. This St. Patrick’s Day, I will not be waking up before the sun to crack open a cold one. I’ll be waking up at my regular 7:30 a.m. alarm to eat a healthy breakfast and workout in my dorm room — which will be followed up with getting glammed up and ready for the St. Patrick’s Day parties that follow. A friend of mine plans on waking up at 4 a.m. (!) while another won’t be drinking at all that day but has offered to take care of anyone that needs a ride.

All our values and value rankings differ substantially, but in our own ways, we are living a balanced life. It’s all in your values.