Keeping up the high school life is not a simple task. In fact, it’s anything but that. You have the basic family, friends, and academic aspects. Just those on an individual’s plate can already be a challenge. But some manage to throw extracurriculars like sports or after school clubs into the juggling act. Then, we have students that do all of the above with a part time job. If you find yourself in the latter situation, you’re an absolute powerhouse. Anyway, no matter your situation, here are some ways that make balancing your high school life significantly easier.
- Plan Effectively
Alright, powerhouse. There’s 24 hours in a day and you get about 5-6 hours of sleep (there’s no way you’re getting the recommended 8). That leaves about 18 hours wake time. Within those hours you have school, work, extracurricular, social time, and study time. With your busy schedule, you’re forced to have a solid time management plan that will help you survive each day. In order to manage your time effectively, you’ve got to be honest with yourself. Be able to realistically comprehend what you can handle with your time. Maybe you can’t work everyday, so you spread out your work days. Hanging out with friends on a school night is probably going to have to wait.
- Use Your Free-Time Wisely
Because you’re as busy as you are, down time is a rare commodity to come by. This makes your free time extremely valuable. You have a couple of options of how you can spend this time, but use them wisely. First and foremost, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with taking some time to yourself. On a busy schedule, you’re probably longing for some leisure time. Another option is to invest your time into another aspect. Here’s an example: You have a couple hours of free-time available. You decide to use that time to get your homework done ahead of time. This, in turn, gives you more time to yourself in the future.
It’s also possible to find small bits of free-time from some of the aspects of your daily life. Maybe you have 15 minutes of down time to study for your test while on the bus or car ride home from school. Or your boss allows you to crack open a book and get some reading done when there aren’t any customers in the store. These small amounts of free-time can add up to an extra hour or two each day.
- Prioritization
Be prepared to make sacrifices in some aspects, but also understand your priorities. School and study time should be at the forefront of your high school career. The rest is really up to you. Ultimately, if you feel like you’re spreading yourself thin, you should back off of an aspect or two to keep you in line.
You also want to make sure that you’re juggling aspects that will help you reach your goals, both personally and towards your future. Obviously, school will help you in both goals, but maybe hanging out with your friends all the time is pulling you off track. Maybe minimize your social activities until your priorities have been worked on. That’s not to say you shouldn’t hang out with friends, but maybe create a system where you have all your homework done before you do anything else. Realizing what’s most important makes juggling your life that much simpler.