"Okay, let's see... I have class at 8am tomorrow, followed by back to back classes, I have to study for my psychology exam, I need to finish my ethics assignment, study for my biology exam, and I work 5 to close."
That's how it usually goes, right? You feel so overwhelmed with your schedule that sometimes you don't even know where to start... College can be a stressful time, and sometimes it feels like there's so much pressure for us college students to do well in our classes, maintain a good GPA, excel on exams and quizzes, have a steady job and work more than just a couple hours a week, all while having a social life and getting a decent amount of sleep each night.
Trying to keep track of all of these things can become super stressful, and sometimes you just end up crawling back into bed and watch Netflix while eating some pizza or Jimmy John's. I've been there, we all have. We've all gotten that bad grade, lost that friend while being mad at another one. We've all had those nights where we stay out late instead of getting sleep, even though we know that we have class at nine o'clock. We've all had those moments when we feel like maybe we just aren't going anywhere with our lives, that we actually don't make our parents proud, and we wonder if there's something else we should be doing with our lives.
But let me tell you a little secret...
Every single day that you get up and go to class, even if you're hungover or simply tired, that in itself is a small accomplishment. Making time to go eat lunch with friends or setting up a study date is an accomplishment. Every single second spent studying will pay off, and they will eventually turn into those two hours that we're constantly told by our professors to study.
You aren't failing, you aren't wasting your time. Success does not appear over the course of a day... it takes time. You are not that bad grade that you got in your physics class, you are not that failed exam, or that late assignment. People screw up, people forget about assignments, life happens. That doesn't mean that you can't pick yourself back up if you hit a little set back. You're human, you make mistakes. We all do. There is no such thing as a perfect human... not even Zac Efron believe it or not (you're supposed to laugh at that, hopefully you did... no? okay...).
Don't let your set backs determine how you view yourself. College isn't easy, it's not meant to be. Keep studying, keep trying. Things may not feel put together now, but someday they will. Someday when you're a successful lawyer or teacher or author, you'll look back on your college days and laugh. You'll smile because all of those hardships you endured made you the person that you've become in your someday. Don't give up. Your parents are proud, your sister, your friends. You were made to make a difference in this life, so keep going, because we all know that you can do it. You just haven't realized it yet.
