As you have most likely realized by this point in the school year, high school requires you to maintain a constant juggling act between countless obligations and time commitments. There is certainly a lot on your plate: school, sports, clubs, relationships and volunteering are just a few of the many activities that may fill up your calendar. Knowing how to manage all of these commitments is one of the most valuable lessons that you can learn in your freshman year. This is a skill that takes a long time to establish, and is ever-changing with your evolving life, but a few seasoned upperclassmen and staff members have some advice and ideas that you can put into practice to create balance in your year.
First, it is important to understand that the foundation of your success and ability to give your all in school, sports and relationships is caring for yourself. Prioritizing your own wellbeing will ensure that you have the capacity to invest energy into your work and the activities that are important to you. At a surface level, this can look like taking care of your mental and physical health, but taking care of yourself also includes making time for the things you enjoy outside of school.
Everyone has heard the basics about maintaining health: get eight hours of sleep each night, exercise, get fresh air, etc. Although it may sound like a broken record, these practices truly make all the difference in your life. Things like sleep and exercise obviously give you energy, and in high school, energy and focus is an invaluable currency.
Several studies prove that an increase in exercise improves your sleep quality, which directly benefits your academic performance and improves your mental health. Just like a car can’t run on an empty fuel tank, it is impossible for you to achieve your goals and put effort into your commitments without feeling healthy and alert.
Once these habits are priorities in your life, you can tackle academic, extracurricular and personal responsibilities with more vigor and success.
Although you can get bogged down in external distractions and feeling exhausted after a long day, staying focused and completing your homework efficiently is going to benefit you in the long run. By managing your time wisely, avoiding distractions and prioritizing important or time-sensitive tasks, you can complete your homework quicker and actually have time to devote to your hobbies and personal interests.
Junior Prabina Chuwan also believes it is important to finish your school work first to have time for other activities later.
“Make sure to do your homework first. After that, the time you have left should be spent with friends and family, but make sure to make time for yourself as well,” she said.
When it comes to balancing your academic life, prioritization is one of the most important tools to use. You will often be loaded with daily assignments and homework that you have to balance with long term tasks like studying for tests and working on projects. Sometimes you will have to make a decision on what to sacrifice and what to focus on. Senior Madeline Newman echoed this reality.
“You’re not going to get everything done, so you need to know what to prioritize,” said Newman.
Everyone has different goals and strengths, so prioritization can look different for each student. You know yourself best, and that may mean you know what subjects or tasks to focus more heavily on. Logistically speaking, however, summative tests and assignments should get your primary focus, as they are worth the majority of your grade.
Additionally, something as simple as breaks between studying can be a great way to add some balance and enjoyment into your nights or study sessions. When you take a break from working, the natural instinct for many people is to go on their phone. However, this can leave you feeling even more mentally depleted than before, due to the high levels of stimulation you get from your phone and social media.
Manheim Township High School counselor Lydia Cockrum has some alternative break ideas to offer.
“Forget about your phone for a little while and do something without screens such as being creative (drawing, painting, etc.), taking a walk without music or scrolling, reading, or just being still. It’s so nice to just slow down sometimes,” Cockrum said.
Using study breaks to do something that not only refreshes your mind but also contributes to your own hobbies and passions will limit your rate of burnout. If you are able to incorporate things that you enjoy into your daily routine, even into your work habits, you will have a greater sense of purpose and fun in your life outside of the sometimes draining patterns of homework and testing.
Extracurricular activities and other time commitments like volunteering, clubs or sports require a different approach when it comes to balance. These types of obligations often have set time blocks, which creates less opportunity for flexibility and personalization.
That being said, choosing activities that you truly enjoy and that challenge you to engage different parts of your brain or use different skillsets can add lots of variety and interest into your life. For example, if you are passionate about the sport that you do or the service project you do for a club, these activities will feel less like an obligation and more like a beneficial addition to your life that makes you a more well-rounded student.
This idea has a lot to do with quantity over quality. Your commitments should be reflective of your interests and passions and not just a line on a résumé. Extracurriculars can be a chance to take a break from your regularly scheduled homework and routines and tap into other parts of your identity, rather than to add further stress to your life.
“Don’t overschedule yourself. It’s ok to say no. You don’t have to be involved in every activity or take every weighted class,” said counselor Michelle Stoudt.
Once again, balance is very personal and unique to your needs. Some students are able to juggle advanced classes and multiple extracurricular activities, but no one is perfect or can manage it all. It is important to know what workload you can handle with success and intention, and not to overload your schedule.
Another aspect of your life that you have to contend with is managing relationships. Like many others, this issue can tip the balance in two ways: your social life could be a distraction and negate from other areas of your life, or you might struggle to make time for your friends in the midst of your busy schedule.
If you find yourself on the first side of the pendulum, you may have to look once again to the concept of prioritization. Relationships are incredibly important and bring so much value to your life, but they should not keep you from completing your work or succeeding in other activities.
If staying in touch with your friends when you are busy is more of a struggle for you, junior AJ Jacobson has advice and reassurance to offer.
“Maintaining relationships is hard for sure. Being busy is okay though. Everyone has a life, if someone is truly your friend, they know life gets busy enough that social connections cannot be avidly maintained. True friends don’t need constant interactions to stay friends,” he said.
In reality, these categories of responsibilities and time commitments don’t exist in isolation. You will have to find practical ways to balance all of these areas of your life that are specific and helpful to you. Once you remove the pressure of doing everything in high school, you can focus on work, activities and relationships that are truly meaningful and beneficial for your goals and interests. Additionally, your own passions and hobbies don’t have to be sacrificed for your success. You should try to intentionally make time for yourself in order to feel less drained or overwhelmed by your daily life.
By building a life that is balanced and diverse, you can become a more well developed and happy student. Not every assignment or activity will be enjoyable, but by caring for yourself and investing time into what is important to you, freshman year can be a time to unlock new skills and excel in ways you didn’t think were possible.
