College is an amazing time in your life. It can also be completely overwhelming. Clubs and Student Orgs to join. Leadership opportunities to say yes to. Jobs and internships and resume building. Oh and there’s class and studying and being social and actually enjoying your time as well.
If we say yes to it all, we quickly become overwhelmed and burned out and feel like we are drowning mid-way through our semester. And that’s no way to spend your 4 years. College should be fun. You should have time to rest and enjoy yourself. And there will be seasons of busyness and being overwhelmed and stressed but that should not define your entire college experience.
This is why simplicity is so important to embrace starting in college. Simplicity is letting go of the things that don’t matter in order to create space for the things that do matter. What is important to you is all that matters. Here are 3 reasons to choose simplicity in college.
Better for your Resume
College is all about preparing for your future. Internships and leadership experiences are important in helping you prepare for what’s ahead. But you don’t need to have 10 different leadership experiences to hone in on your skills. You can only add so much to your resume. Yes, having these experiences look good to future grad programs or employers, however your resume is more of a “highlight reel”, not an exhaustive list of everything you’ve ever been somewhat involved in. Picking one or two of these experiences and really investing your time, skills and attention will actually help you grow and develop more than if you spread yourself too thin among too many experiences. This mindset will also help to better prepare you for whatever is ahead in your career path.
More sustainable
When we get rid of the things that don’t matter, we create a whole bunch of space for what does matter. For what’s most important. We only have 24 hours in a day. If we are spending most of our time on things that aren’t the most important to us, then that time spent is a waste. Think about a schedule built around the things that matter most to you instead of trying to cram in your priorities into an already packed calendar. When we prioritize well, not only are we are doing the things that matter most to us. We are doing the things that bring us life and joy. Not every day is going to feel like the most joyful experience of course, but when we are actively working towards the things that matter, our schedule and calendar become much more sustainable. We have the energy and excitement we need, even in those seasons of busyness and stress.
Being present and enjoying your time in college matters
College is a season in your life to enjoy and have fun, to soak up and be fully present for. It’s a time to figure out who you are and who you want to be, to give yourself permission to change and evolve and grow. Yes, you have important things to do and working hard in your academics and being involved on campus is important. But it’s not the whole point. Life is meant to be lived and experienced and learned from. Being present where you’re at is so important in our increasingly distractible lives. Practicing simplicity helps us get rid of those distractions (whether they be calendars that are too full or way too much time spent scrolling) and focus on what’s right in front of us. You’re never going to get to the end of a day and wish you had been less present to the experiences and people around you.
Can you get through your 4 years without simplifying or figuring out your priorities? Of course you can. But I promise you, your college experience will be so much fulfilling if you stop trying to do it all and practice simplicity. Reach out to hello@simplycollege.org if you have any questions and look for the brand new Simply College Podcast coming to your AirPods soon.
Subscribe to receive all things simplicity + college in your inbox!