There's no doubt that college is a time of learning. By the time you graduate in four (or more -- no judgement here) years, you will have spent over 1,800 hours in a classroom at the university level. So there's no doubt you've learned a lot, but there's another aspect of learning that comes with college, and it takes place outside the classroom. I'm certainly not saying what you've learned in class isn't valuable, only that the other stuff is too.
For most of us, college was the first time we were able to independently make our own decisions and live under our own rules, and no matter how awesome (or disastrous) that was, there's no doubt you gained a lot of valuable information about both the world and yourself. Now, as I enter my final semester of college, I'm looking back on and reflecting on what were, in my opinion, the biggest lessons I've learned.
1. You have to learn balance in your life -- and learn it quickly.
With all the new additions to your lifestyle upon entering college, you must learn how to balance the many components. And it's hard. On top of a full schedule of classes, you have to integrate a social life, exercise, sleep, eating, studying, and often a job. Since there has been no news of any increase in the amount of hours in a day, you have to learn how to allocate time for everything, and it's not easy.
2. Your "friends" may not always have your best interest at heart.
Yes, this one is tough to hear, and it's probably a bit pessimistic, but it's true. You enter college with a trusting and a not yet jaded heart, and you sometimes learn the hard way that not everyone has the same heart as you. There are people out there who choose to root for your failure rather than your successes, and it's a tough lesson to learn, but once you do, you're more quickly able to spot these people.
3. When you find true friends, you cherish and hold on to them.
On a more positive note, you will meet some incredible people in college -- people who had your back through the tough stuff, and who consistently lift you up rather than bring you down. You learn that these people are worth making sacrifices for, and that these friendships deserve the effort. You may go through some struggles in college, so pay attention to who stays by your side during those times.
4. Your metabolism is somewhat of a moving target.
OK, so maybe you can't eat Chick-Fil-A for lunch and then Zaxby's for dinner on a daily basis anymore. It's a tough blow, but you learn to make adjustments. Finding a balance between healthy eating and eating whatever you want is not easy, but you'll start to figure it out as you go.
5. It's OK not to be exuberantly happy all the time.
You're going to hear "college is the best four years of your life" very frequently, and that could be true! College is awesome, but it very well may not be the best four years of your life, so don't put pressure on yourself to be constantly happy just because you feel that you need to meet some sort of predetermined guideline of required joy. You're going to be happy, but you're going to have moments of stress and loneliness too -- and that's OK.
6. You may drift away from freshman-year friends by senior year.
While you will likely have many of the same friends from freshman to senior year, you may lose touch with a few along the way. People change and so do their interests, and it's just a part of life you learn to accept.
7. Everything has a way of working out and being OK in the end.
I don't even want to know how many hours of sleep I lost worrying about things that, guess what, did not end up being the end of the world. In fact, most of the things I thought would be a disastrous blow to my life ended up making exactly zero effect on it whatsoever. This is probably the biggest lesson I learned in college. Don't worry about the things outside of your control, because everything will be OK, and there's an extremely probable chance the world will keep turning.
