I know 2013 is gone but I thought it would be beneficial for me to sit down and briefly assess the year that I had.
As a college student, my year is divided into two phases: school and not-school. Quite a lot of the first and little slivers of the second. Two school semesters sandwiched around a long summer break.
January 2013. Spring semester on the horizon. The parents tell me that this could very well be my last semester at the school because of monetary issues. I was advised to take eighteen units instead of the usual fifteen so I could finish with 60 credits and possibly transfer out to another school with two full years under my belt. Something like that. Three more units, one extra class. That can't be that much harder right? Wrong.
For some reason, I was not at all prepared for that semester. I went in knowing it would be difficult, knowing it would be a lot and knowing I would have to step it up to do well. For some reason, I just wasn't there. My grades weren't awful but they could've been better. On top of all the stresses of classes and work and grades, I got real sick in April and missed a week of class. Everything turned out okay in the end; I still managed to have a good time and pass all my classes, but it definitely could have been a better semester on my part.
In the middle of the summer I went on a 'missions trip' with my school to inner city Los Angeles where we lived and worked with a church in the projects for four weeks. Life-changing to say the least. One of the best things I've ever done. But that's another story for another day. In the weeks before the trip however, I was not prepared. I was frustrated over things at home and at the dojo, I was rather bored with no job and nothing to do. My head was not in the right place. I was caught up in myself, concerned about me and what I want to do and where I want to go, yet I was going on this trip to be selfless and serve and help others. I had a huge reality check the night before I left home; it was one of those "what in the world are you doing, get yourself together" kind of night. But I went on the trip. It worked out. I made it through with a good attitude and had the time of my life. Who knew.
Six weeks later I was back to school. I went two weeks early for work purposes so I had a lot of time to steel myself for another full semester. I was determined not to make Fall '13 a repeat of Spring '13. Wrong again.
I don't know how else to put it. I was not mentally there until three weeks into the semester. I really scrambled to get the first round of papers in, staying up late and waking up early to write six or seven papers of all sizes in four days. Reality check again. "Your parents are giving how much for you to be at this school? And you reward them by procrastinating and spacing out. Well done." Played catch-up the rest of the way, it sucked but I survived. What I deemed to be my worst semester thus far ended up being my best semester academically. Don't ask me how.
I don't know if you've noticed a theme here. I did Boy Scouts when I was wee lad. Apparently all the "Be Prepared" pledges I took didn't pan out because I was prepared for nothing all year long. I know I can't be completely prepared for anything and the year did have its surprises but I wasn't even prepared for the things that I knew were going to go down. I felt like the entire year was one big "I'm about to jump out of this plane but I guess I'll check the parachute on the way down" kind of deal. What the heck.
If there's anything to learn from last year's mistakes it would be... get your feet underneath you and get your head in the game? I feel like I got away with a lot and I know that I can't afford to do that again. Stuff is getting real and I need to hit the ground running this year.
Now's the time to make resolutions and start over yes? New year, new you right? Here's an "easy" one: look back on what you did and take the necessary step to not making those mistakes again. Yes you will find new mistakes to make this year but at least you won't be stumbling over the blunders of the past.
Don't just "wing it". That's what I did. Don't do what I did.
In the middle of the summer I went on a 'missions trip' with my school to inner city Los Angeles where we lived and worked with a church in the projects for four weeks. Life-changing to say the least. One of the best things I've ever done. But that's another story for another day. In the weeks before the trip however, I was not prepared. I was frustrated over things at home and at the dojo, I was rather bored with no job and nothing to do. My head was not in the right place. I was caught up in myself, concerned about me and what I want to do and where I want to go, yet I was going on this trip to be selfless and serve and help others. I had a huge reality check the night before I left home; it was one of those "what in the world are you doing, get yourself together" kind of night. But I went on the trip. It worked out. I made it through with a good attitude and had the time of my life. Who knew.
Six weeks later I was back to school. I went two weeks early for work purposes so I had a lot of time to steel myself for another full semester. I was determined not to make Fall '13 a repeat of Spring '13. Wrong again.
I don't know how else to put it. I was not mentally there until three weeks into the semester. I really scrambled to get the first round of papers in, staying up late and waking up early to write six or seven papers of all sizes in four days. Reality check again. "Your parents are giving how much for you to be at this school? And you reward them by procrastinating and spacing out. Well done." Played catch-up the rest of the way, it sucked but I survived. What I deemed to be my worst semester thus far ended up being my best semester academically. Don't ask me how.
I don't know if you've noticed a theme here. I did Boy Scouts when I was wee lad. Apparently all the "Be Prepared" pledges I took didn't pan out because I was prepared for nothing all year long. I know I can't be completely prepared for anything and the year did have its surprises but I wasn't even prepared for the things that I knew were going to go down. I felt like the entire year was one big "I'm about to jump out of this plane but I guess I'll check the parachute on the way down" kind of deal. What the heck.
If there's anything to learn from last year's mistakes it would be... get your feet underneath you and get your head in the game? I feel like I got away with a lot and I know that I can't afford to do that again. Stuff is getting real and I need to hit the ground running this year.
Now's the time to make resolutions and start over yes? New year, new you right? Here's an "easy" one: look back on what you did and take the necessary step to not making those mistakes again. Yes you will find new mistakes to make this year but at least you won't be stumbling over the blunders of the past.
Don't just "wing it". That's what I did. Don't do what I did.
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