While your time in high school may not ultimately amount to much in the grand scheme of things, it is the perfect foundation to build on. The habits you build today can help you get the most value out of your university experience and then continue to help you excel in your career and personal ambitions. The value you’ll get from setting targets and staying active (even if it’s through a series of baby steps) is all you’ll need to make significant progress.
If you want to set yourself off right, then start building up on these habits today:
Split Up Your Studying
You should aim to learn a little bit at various points throughout the day. This will do wonders towards helping you retain information naturally, without the stress. Getting into the habit of working in bursts like this can help you improve your grades now and while in university, and can even make it easy to pick up a lifelong learning approach that will help your career, your brain’s health, and your personal sense of fulfillment.
Stick to Two Extra Projects at a Time
It’s better to do a few things well than many things poorly. This, at least, should be your motor for extracurricular activities. Your education and growth are already two massive focal points of your life, and trying to do too many things at once will lead to burnout. That being said, it’s in your best interest to go above and beyond in terms of your extracurriculars. There is a middle ground. In general, try to stick to two extra commitments at any given time. One of those commitments should be long-term, like a club or society. The second should be short term, like projects, competitions, or internships.
Maintain Good Health
Your physical and mental health will play a massive part in your motivation, your ability to learn, and your chances of success. If you want to build habits that will make a huge difference, start with healthy ones. Maintaining good health by eating nutritious meals, exercising regularly, and caring for your mental health will do more for your quality of life and overall outlook than anything else.
Check In On Your Progress
It’s always a good idea to keep up to date on what your progress and efforts mean in real-life value. While an employer in the future isn’t going to care about your GPA or SAT score stats, universities do, and employers care about what institution you attend. Go online regularly to stay refreshed on the latest true New York University GPA requirements, for example, and you can stay on track with your efforts. The reason why you need to look up what current students’ averages are is that they may differ wildly from the minimum requirement. Why aim for the bare minimum, after all, when you can strive for excellence?
Don’t Worry if You Don’t Follow the Same Path
There are always options and opportunities. If you don’t get into NYU right off the bat, then you can go to another university and aim to transfer later. You may find a different course was the better fit after all. In the end, it doesn’t matter how many stops, starts, and twists your journey takes you. So long as you use the aforementioned tips and build on those good habits, you’ll be able to make the most out of every situation you find yourself in.
