In this day in age, we all seem to be obsessed with the idea of success. We get caught up with feeling like we're obligated to overextend ourselves when it comes to school and extra-curricular activities that will benefit our career paths. We spend countless hours obsessing over how much longer we have until graduation, making lists of things we haven't accomplished instead of making them about things we have accomplished.
We don't give ourselves any credit for our accomplishments. Instead, we pile on excessive amounts of work onto our plates, most of the time biting off more than we can chew, thinking that this will make us feel full -- like we're actually doing something beneficial for our lives. But at the end of the day, we come to the realization that we are quite unhappy.
This feeling may seem confusing. We feel like we are doing everything in our power to ensure academic security. That seems to be right because we are technically working towards our future, so why do we feel empty inside? The answer lies with the remaining untouched aspects of our lives.
What about your family? What about your friends? What about yourself? Being so busy all of the time with classes, work, internships and extracurricular activities can easily make us lose sight of all of these wonderful things we seem to forget about because we take them for granted. We think they will always be there and we can come back to them at any point in life.
The truth of the matter is, we can't guarantee that any of these things in our lives are permanent. If we don't stop for a moment to re-evaluate our lives, it may be too late. Whether it's 5 years, 10 years, or 30 years from now, the last thing we should feel is regret. No one wants to look back at their youth and see how much they missed out on.
Now I'm not saying to ditch all of your career plans, drop out of college and become a street performer (unless that's low key been your life-long dream, then totally go for it). It's actually quite admirable how a lot of us at this age have successful jobs, are doing great in classes, have landed internships with legitimate companies and are active members of our university communities. These are all accomplishments we should give ourselves credit for.
But with all of this success, it is necessary to give ourselves a break. Think of all of the little things that make us happy. Call that grandparent that always wants to talk to you but you never make the time to set aside a 10 minute phone conversation, that will probably make their day. Grab lunch with your best friend you rarely get to see because you're both on the same busy boat. Catch up on the episodes you've missed of your favorite show. Go on a date. Go somewhere in the city you keep telling yourself you wanna visit but never make the time to actually go. Read a book. Take a yoga class. Go biking. Go to the beach. Plan a day trip with your closest friends. Eat at a trendy new restaurant. Fall in love. Study abroad. Do something you've never done before.
It may sound cliché, but life really is short, and you never know when it's going to end. It is crucial that we balance our lives in the best way possible. It may seem hard at times, especially since time management can be difficult given the amount of tasks we set ourselves to complete, but it is possible. It's about time we give ourselves the credit we deserve, and start living the life we deserve and are so lucky to live.
