Editor’s note: Maintaining balance within a busy schedule

Now that we’ve just passed the midway mark of this fall academic semester, it seems the amount of work we need to finish continues to pile higher and higher. 

In the midst of constantly feeling bogged down by classes and school work, it can seem difficult to foster a balanced lifestyle. 

It seems that no matter how much time we spend striving to catch up on readings while keeping up with assignments and midterms, it seems impossible to feel 100 per cent caught up.

Every weekend, I tell myself I’m going to use my time wisely and catch up on all the reading I neglected to do during the week. I’m sure I’m not alone in my continued procrastination every weekend after a long week of work and classes. 

Although spending all Saturday and Sunday catching up would make you feel immensely less stressed on Monday; leaving yourself feeling exhausted and going without a mental break all week is not conducive to being productive.

For those people who work part-time or full-time jobs and have committed your time to extra-curriculars in addition to school, knowing how to prioritize it all can be a challenge. Especially while attempting to add a social and personal life into the mix. 

This year for me, working a full-time job while still in school part-time, it has been a challenge to adapt to and to figure out how to balance all of my commitments. 

As I spend most of my time running a publication that I love and am passionate about, finding the time to put my job aside and work on school has been my major struggle. 

Despite these busy times, there’s always room to balance other things. Finding the right amount of everything is never an exact science and is always changing.

After working all day, starting to work on assignments, readings and essays is never an easy choice when I could go home and watch Netflix with my favourite person. 

But balancing all the things I love — although some tasks are less fun than some others — is super important.

On some afternoons that are less busy at work, I choose to go to the gym instead of working ahead here at The Cord or finishing an assignment that would relieve a lot of stress for the following week. 

And on the weekends, making plans with friends — even though that time could be spent studying — is probably going to help your overall well being in the long run. 

For me, I’ve never thrived off the stress of leaving an essay, assignment, or studying until the night before. 

I know that I can’t manage to accomplish anything of substance or quality while running off of a few hours or zero sleep.

In this same way, I think it’s pretty universal to say that focusing on school 24/7 is never as productive as we think it should be. 

All of this and more was the main message iterated through Thrive Week held at Laurier last week. The initiative was aimed at educating students about how to care for their well being and reminding them to take breaks mentally as well as physically in the form of eating healthy and getting exercise. 

Finding a balance between everything you have in your life is a process. During a busy week at school, the things you prioritize might change, leaving more room for studying and preparing. 

Despite these busy times, there’s always room to balance other things. Finding the right amount of everything is never an exact science and is always changing.