Do you ever feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done? If so, you aren’t alone.
High school is a busy and transformative period. Fun and exciting activities are intermixed with challenges and many opportunities for growth.
Many seniors report that a successful high school experience comes from maintaining a healthy work-play balance. However getting good grades, participating in extracurricular activities, and having an active social life can be a difficult task.
Senior Paul VandenBranden successfully maintains this balance. He handles a 4.313 GPA, two varsity sports, a part-time job, various extracurricular activities, and an active social life. There are specific skills and habits that allow VandenBranden to achieve this balance. VandenBranden attributes his ability to maintain a strong academic record while being active socially to his strong time management skills.
“Time management is one of the best skills anyone can have,” VandenBranden said. “When you get comfortable and good at managing your time, you’ll find that you can do a lot of things you enjoy with very little stress.”
VandenBranden has found that to achieve his goals, he can not afford to procrastinate or waste his time on social media. Instead, VandenBranden uses any downtime he has during the day to complete his schoolwork.
“I have a free period after Orchestra, so usually I’ll go home and work on homework,” VandenBranden said.
In addition to his academic and social activities, VandenBranden plays varsity football and tennis and works a part-time job at Smug’s Pizza. VandenBranden uses athletics to stay healthy and fit, while also as a fun recreational outlet. He works part-time at Smug’s to make money for college. Sports take up a significant part of VandenBranden’s time, so finding time to work can be difficult.
“The biggest thing with managing other activities alongside sports is maintaining good communication with your coach,” VandenBranden said. “And really putting effort in on the days you can be there.”
VandenBranden worked with his coach to arrange that he would miss Wednesday practices so that he could pick up more shifts at work.
With only so many hours in the week, VandenBranden has to make sacrifices to maintain his busy lifestyle. The hustle and bustle of a busy schedule can be tiring, so it is important to find ways to prevent burnout.
“I make sure to surround myself with things I enjoy so that they don’t feel like a burden,” VandenBranden said. “I truly enjoy most of the things I do, which makes them worthwhile to me.”
VandenBranden emphasizes that it is important to follow your dreams and do the activities you love.
“If you wanna do something, take initiative and just start doing it,” VandenBranden said.
You can’t do everything, but with strong time management skills and a clear goal in mind, your dreams will get closer to fruition every day.
