Creating a balance

The journey to achieving harmony between school and life

I often find myself thinking about the person I was before I became a university student. Now that my first year has passed and my second year is dawning, I see the past projection of myself almost whimsically and I’m amused by how foolish I was to believe that I had everything figured out this time one year ago. 

I can recall the weeks before my first day at UofT, sitting down at my kitchen table writing out a list of all the things I was going to do while away at school. Among other arbitrary activities, this list consisted of not one but two part-time jobs, dance class, social outings, and maintaining a long-distance relationship—and out of a list of roughly twenty things, I ended up checking off two.  

Universities are constantly promoting a plethora of wonderful programs and clubs that students can take part in, but they never actually tell you how to keep up with them all; as if it’s some innate skill all 18-year-olds should have. Well, I’m here to tell you, there are very few people that have this talent naturally. If there is one lesson that I have learned so far as a student, it’s that maintaining a healthy balance between school and your personal life is one of the most jarring yet crucial dilemmas of pursuing a degree.  

I am constantly bombarded with questions from friends and family about how I juggle so many things at once while keeping up with my studies, and for a long time my response was always along the lines of: “I drink a lot of coffee.” However, the truth is that managing a school/life balance takes a lot more than just caffeine. It’s a skill that takes time to develop and to many students, such an idea seems daunting. Students, especially in their first year, tend to prioritize their academics, which wouldn’t be an issue if it weren’t at the expense of other equally important activities.  

As a first-year student, I had an unrealistic notion of what university life should offer, so I was unprepared, overwhelmed, and disoriented when the various roles I was expected to carry out conflicted with one another. “Get good grades,” “Work a part time job,” “Hang out with your friends,” —all phrases that haunted me during my year as a freshman. The pressure started to have a negative impact on my mental health and I eventually got to the point where I didn’t want to do anything. Not only did my symptoms grow worse each day, they were completely unfamiliar to me, so I didn’t understand what was wrong, let alone how to ask for help. My grades dropped, I cut off my friends and family, and sunk into a void of endless self-doubt. 

This phase in my life was not only a nightmare, but also a lesson. It allowed me to take a step back and see my problems objectively, and I was able to understand where I was struggling and why. It took time to rebuild confidence in myself, but I eventually overcame the obstacles that had been thrown at my feet, and truthfully, I ended up learning far more from that experience than I did in any of my classes that year. It’s essential to recognize that even though school is important and should be a top priority, it must be complemented by a personal life and self-care in order to optimize your academic success.  

There are three main things I now consider to be equally necessary to school: nutrition, exercise, and social/personal relationships. Post-secondary students (including myself during my first year) often neglect to carry out these elements, and as a result, their academic performance and general health suffers. Your well-being determines how you function both physically and mentally, and abandoning it to pursue your studies is, ironically, a common cause of the decline in grades.  

Although it can feel impossible, having a healthy and stable balance between school and your personal life is within reason and absolutely obtainable. I have narrowed down some of the best tips and advice I feel I can offer, based on my own experience and that of my peers, on how to achieve this.  

MAINTAIN RELATIONSHIPS 

Having a support system is crucial, whether it’s your family, friends, or significant other. Don’t cut them off because you have too much schoolwork to do. Keep in touch with those who are close to you, go out to social events when you can (but not all the time), and allow yourself the freedom of still being able to have fun and socialize. Otherwise, what’s the point? 

EAT WELL 

Eating healthy when you don’t have a meal plan can be expensive and time consuming, but it is important to help keep up your energy. Plan out your meals for the week, shop effectively, and even choose a day to do some meal prep—it saves you more time in the end! 

EXERCISE 

So, you said you were going to go to the gym every week, but somehow that didn’t quite go according to plan. Something a lot of people don’t realize is that you don’t need a gym to work out; take the stairs, walk to class, or even plan fifteen minutes in the morning to do your own work out plan. Tip: “Yoga with Adrienne” tutorials on YouTube are a quick and easy way to get a good boost of energy!<i/> 

PLAN YOUR DAYS 

Take a moment to actually plan out your schedule for the week. Making your own calendar, or at least writing it down, helps a lot, because it allows you to visualize your time and manage it more efficiently. Designate meal times, study times, fun times, and of course, break time. This way you know what to expect out of your day and you will get more done. 

PRIORITIZE  

Know how to decide if something is worth the designation of your time. There will always be things that you want to do, but consider my list of twenty––it’s more realistic and manageable to pick a small handful of things that you can do without worrying about anything else.  

ESTABLISH BOUNDARIES  

It’s important to make time for things that you care about, but also make sure that they don’t take over your other obligations and duties. Have designated times for everything and do your best not to stray from your schedule too often, otherwise it’s easy to make luxury a habit.  

Always remember that everyone works differently—what worked for me may not be the best solution for you. So try different things, ask for help when you need it, and remember that balance is not something that you can find, it’s something that you must create for yourself.