So You're starting College

Many people have been there before, "You've been Accepted to (Insert Appropriate College)" College isn't always about partying and sleeping in. It's about hard work and dedication. Instead of treating College as a reason to party, make it something to remember. College is really a 4 year long interview when you think about it. When you come into class on the first day...are you alert and ready for the class? Or did you forget your book, don't want to be there, and you just rolled out of bed? A tip for College students would be to take classes that you are WANTING to learn, take something that will Challenge you in an area that you are unfamiliar with, and take a class that will benefit you. Be involved on your local campus, make new friends, go Greek, join a club, DO SOMETHING! There is more opportunity to College than dorm life and day drinking. Here are some tips for College:

1. College is about the people you meet. Value them above all else.


2. If you're not good at remembering names, change that. Repeat the name or invent a (preferably flattering) story to associate a name to a person's personality or physique.


3. Avoid eating alone. You're going to eat anyways and should value this part of your day as a moment to talk to friends and meet new people, which includes taking professors to lunch.


4. A romantic relationship is not a waste of time. Even if you're the busiest, most ambitious person in the world, it'll be good for you across the board.


5. Your parents love and miss you. They've cared for you for 18 years. Indulge them with a call from time to time. It's not lame.


6. There are people willing to help you with anything. All you have to do is ask.


7. Conversely, give help and mentor. If you see someone who's having a tough time, do something about it. It will mean so much to them and you'll learn from it.
Learning
8. You have two ears and one mouth, and that design happens to be intelligent.


9. Screw easy A's. If you're not learning and / or taking pleasure in the class, you're wasting your time.


10. At the start, be open to everything. During the course selection period, sample two or three more classes than you'll take and later drop whichever least attract you.


11. Try to learn very different things. Some of the most confident and successful graduates are skilled in two seemingly polar subjects, like computer science and political science or finance and filmmaking. You'll be surprised by how you can pair these together to create something unique.


12. Don't take advice from movies, magazines, or newspapers. Read good books, learn by doing, and come to your own conclusions.
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Spirit of Adventure
14. Ask for forgiveness more often than for permission.


15. Your school is willing and eager to throw money at you in research grants and extracurricular funding. If you show you want it enough, you'll get that new club started, or that free trip around the world.


16. If you don't get, it may very well be because you don't ask.


17. If you're faced with a choice between locking yourself up and studying for an exam or doing something much more epic and memorable, choose epic.


18. Go to performing arts shows in areas outside of your bubble.


19. Don't wait till senior year to do those things you want to do or become who you want to be. Ask people you want to meet for coffee now, take those interesting classes now, work on those side projects now, go on those dates now, join these clubs now, go on those crazy weekend road trips and ski trips now.
Self-Discipline, Efficiency & Other Hacks for Well Being
20. Don't miss your classes because of sleeping in, but nap religiously in the middle of the day. In general, get sleep. You'll feel better, and you'll do better. Pulling all-nighters is not going to make you look any smarter or cooler. Exhaustion and burnout are a common campus plague.


21. Don't drink Red Bull, Monster or any energy drinks. Stick with coffee and tea, in moderation.


22. Laundry is like studying. It's a lot easier in smaller, more frequent loads.


23. Get a bike. It'll make the campus so much smaller.


24. Buy a scale and use an app to graph your weight every day. It's OK if the line goes up, but you should be aware of it as it happens. Your weight will teach you things about your life.


25. Find and protect the time of day when you're most productive. We all have one. Defend it at all costs. Disconnect phone and Internet.


26. Don't be complacent but be happy. Be thankful for where you are. Everything is already pretty great.