Make New Friends, but Keep the Old

So everyone sees all of the teens on television going off to college and making a huge group of friends that eventually become their bridesmaids and best men and so forth. That’s great, but it may not happen right away. Don’t feel discouraged if after the first day of class you haven’t made a ton of new friends. If you go join clubs, play a sport, or just try and talk to people in your classes then you will have friends in no time. Trust me. After my first week of classes I could count the number of new friends I had on one hand. I immediately thought “oh my gosh I have no friends! What is wrong with me!?” Don’t do that.  I joined two clubs and made a few more friends. Then I tried to talk to people in class and I made a few more. A mob of people aren’t going to swarm around you the first day demanding you be their friend. Well, unless you’re famous or something.

Making new friends is always fun, but what about the people you grew up with? The one who was at your bus stop the first day of kindergarten?  The one who you ate lunch with every day from first grade until you graduated high school? The ones that you hugged and cried with when you left for college? Hopefully you didn’t forget these people. I admit that I have already lost touch with some of my high school friends and it seems like some people have forgotten about me. With things such as Facebook and web cams it’s easy to keep in touch with people who aren’t nearby. You just have to find the time. New friends may be great, but don’t forget about the ones who have been with you longest.

Procrastination

I was never one to have a big problem with procrastination. I wouldn’t start homework as soon as I got it, but I wouldn’t wait until the last possible second either. Lately, that has been changing. I no longer have my parents to say, “Is all of your homework done” as I am leaving the dinner table every night. I have to remember to do my homework on my own. My problem is not remembering though, it’s actually doing the work before last minute.

If you have trouble remembering to finish work I would definitely get an agenda or a planner to keep track of your homework. Even a small notebook will work. Make sure you write down EVERYTHING. It may even be helpful to highlight really important things like research papers and projects. Make sure you check your planner each day as a reminder of due dates. It doesn’t help if you just write down an assignment and then forget about it.

Make your own due dates. If a teacher says a big assignment is due on a Friday, tell yourself it’s due on Wednesday. This way you will make sure to have your assignment done on time. You will also have extra time to check over your work for mistakes and ask your teacher any questions you may have. Waiting until last minute to write a paper is never a good idea. You may think you will have enough time but something unexpected may come up. Whatever strategy you use the most important thing is that your work gets done on time.