A new semester has begun. That means the expectations are again set high, but the reality is that those expectations are probably going to be thrown out the window in a few short weeks. The stress, late nights, procrastination, naps and other unfortunate realities are like a storm cloud just waiting to rain down on students.
“This semester I am going to study,” says every college student.
Everyone is striving for that 4.0, so they promise to go to every SI session, rewrite the notes after every class and say goodbye to procrastination forever. The reality is that whenever they log on their Alex assignments or start their next paper they will end up binge watching Netflix for three hours.
“This semester I am going to work out,” says every college student.
Auburn has one of the nicest rec centers in the country, so it would be crazy to not take advantage of it. The reality is that when any college student has three tests and a paper due, workouts get put on the back burner and studying becomes an excuse not to go.
“This semester I am going to stop eating out,” says every college student.
The belief is out there that if a workout is skipped, then a healthy meal will make up for it. This is probably not the most scientifically proven fact, but the reality is that Chick-fil-a is too conveniently located to give up fast food.
“This semester I am going to get organized,” says every college student.
They get a planner to write out every assignment due and plaster "SPRING BREAK" across March 11-15, but quickly forget about it when they remember canvas will notify them
“This semester I am actually going to look presentable for class,” says every college student.
This works fine for the first week, then they will realize sleeping 30 extra minutes is a better way to spend that valuable time. So, it will result in wearing the same shirt they wore two days ago and never touching a hairbrush.
“This semester I am not going to go out as much,” says every college student.
Doing this will improve grades, sleep schedule and it will be beneficial for their health, but the reality is that college kids tend not to care about those things. They will cave the minute a friend begs them to go.
So, set the expectations high, but know reality will kick in. It is okay though, everyone caves at some point. Just keep telling yourself that there's always next semester.
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