It’s hard to find the right balance in life when you are just working and having your home / extracurricular life, trying to add school into that mixture can turn into quite the balancing act. I don’t think you really realize how intense school is going to be until you actually start your program. When I first started my program I was still working full time , my hours were 8:30am to 430pm then I would dart off to school to be there for 5 , I did this for about 2 months ! I was fortunate enough to be able to save a bit of money before I started school and I also have a very supportive boyfriend and family that has helped me along the way, I truly admire people that are working , have children and are attending school. I can just imagine how busy their life is , I myself have school , studying , baseball ( I play on 2 teams ) and I also work with Mothers Against Drunk Drivers doing volunteer work and sitting on their board. I love when someone asks what I do in my spare time – if I ever get any I sleep J
I would say the biggest thing you need to have when you enter school is time management , you need to be able to prioritize and set goals. If you make excuses to not get things done you will fall behind and it will by very hard to catch up! You need to let people know that you may not be available and you need to be able to say no if you need to. Don’t get me wrong , I’ve still had a social life while I’ve been in school , I’ve just been able to know what I need to get done and what’s due when and then I would just get all the homework and studying done before I went out and did anything. I did have to sacrifice a few weekends and get together but in the end I know it will be worth it. Your friends and family will understand if you have to miss a few things here and there. I found though you need to reward yourself for all the hard work you are doing ,it may be something small like a fancy coffee from Starbucks and it can be something you’ve been wanting – like buying that new pair of shoes because you did so good on a test or project. The saying is true that all work and no play can make you go a little crazy , just remember all things are okay in moderation and know what your priorities are and everything will be okay and before you know it school is over and all your hard work will have paid off! Once you are working in the field you won’t even remember the things you had to miss.
