A Lesson in Juggling: Tips to De-Stress Your Life

By Lamia Hajani on October 8, 2012

As a first year college student, I wasn’t really prepared for what was coming up in the future. I expected myself to be able to handle classes, a job, clubs, and more all at once. I’d done it in high school, so how much worse could it be in college, right?

Wrong.

I ended up juggling so many different commitments at once that I made myself sick with anxiety attacks. On the bright side, though, I figured out how to handle all those things at once without putting myself into misery.

  1. Stop the commitment early if you know you’ve got too much on your plate.No one wants to be the person that gives up, but if you’re in too deep, you’re going to have to prioritize your commitments from most important to least important. Then you can figure out what exactly is important to you and what you might be able to let go of. Personally, I have at least 8 quarters ahead of me to do everything I want to do. As long as I remember that, I’ll be fine.
  2. Keep a planner.Write everything down. Everything. If you make sure to keep a calendar or planner of everything you have yourself committed to, you won’t find yourself double committed. It can be really difficult to remember everything if you don’t write it down, as well. Make sure you have everything put down in one place so you can look at it constantly and remind yourself of what you have to do.
  3. Find time to relax.No one wants to be working all the time. Not getting enough sleep hurts you and can’t help you at all. Make sure you give yourself enough sleep every night and give yourself time to be by yourself.
  4. Spend time with your friends.
    As much as you need alone time, you also need some time with the people you love. Try to spend at least an hour a day with someone you truly care about. When you’re in a position where you’re juggling too many things at once, it can really help to vent to your friends.
  5. Do what you love.
    Make sure you’re not only doing things that look good on resumes. Do what makes you happy. If something doesn’t feel right or you don’t see yourself doing it for a good purpose, don’t do it. You’ll only regret spending so much time on it in the end.

Commitments are hard. I only learned that recently. I’ve stressed myself out to the point where my hair has fallen out, but you don’t have to deal with that. Follow these simple five steps and you won’t have to learn the hard way, like I did.

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