A third-year college student regrets not knowing her own values before freshman year. She spread herself too thin across clubs, jobs, and social events out of FOMO, tanking her sleep and mental health. Her advice: figure out who you are first, then build your schedule around that identity instead of saying yes to everything.
Now that I'm a 3rd year in college and I have students in college, I can officially give big sister advice on things I wish I knew when I was a freshman. This is my absolute biggest advice above all else, to have a sense of yourself before you go into college. Yes, college is a time for you to explore yourself. There are so many different options and so many different people, so many different things that you could do, and it could get very, very distracting. I was very overwhelmed with all of the club applications, all of the job opportunities. I joined a sorority. I applied to 10, 20 clubs. I was taking a full course load, partying 3 times a week, and exploring like 3, 4 different career options. Needless to say, my sleep schedule was less than ideal, and my mental health was also fluctuating a lot. You should always be trying new things and be open to new opportunities, but my exploration was not driven by passion as much as it was by FOMO. If you're not fully sure of who you are, who you want to be, it could be very easy to be influenced by whatever you hear around you. This applies to everything from social to sports, academics to career. Looking back, I really should have reserved more time for myself, for working out, for wellness, and sleeping. You know I'm big on that right now. But back then, I just didn't think that was as important because I was just so scared of missing out on whatever's happening. If you're a freshman in college or going to college and you're overwhelmed by all of the options, just know that you're not alone. The more picky you are with what you put your time into, the better. The most successful people I see around me all practice tunnel vision when it comes to what they put their time on. If you want to get a certain internship, focus on the internship. If you want to start a business, focus on the business. Build your schedule around that core identity of you rather than let everything else take up your time.
