College Life: The Grind and How to Not Let It Bother You

Hey all. I'm back to update you on my college life, and it's been going quite swimmingly. Just a few things to catch you up on if you don't look at my Facebook profile:

• Broadway Revue was at the end of September, and it was fantastic. I got to work with some great people in the theater department and was featured in a number from Finding Neverland that I had a blast with. It wore me out so much, but in the end it was a very fulfilling and enjoyable experience. 
• So, there's this girl named Felicia, and she's incredible. That is all I'll say about that for now. 
• I was in the room where it happened on October 23 and saw Hamilton in Chicago with Felicia and a few of her friends. Big thanks to my parents for a great birthday present in that ticket, possibly the best I've ever gotten. 

So, with that lengthier-than-I-thought-it-would-be update, let's talk about my personal least favorite part of any college semester: that time when you realize you're in the grind. 

It sucks. There's no beating around the bush that no matter what classes you have, no matter your relationship status, no matter your amount of sleep, the grind sucks. That being said, there's ways to make it suck less, and here are some that have helped me out:

1. Just chill. Not even kidding. The best way to relieve the stress is to sit back, relax, and do something to just unwind. This might be reading, this might be listening to music (and only listening to music), this might be watching Netflix. Whatever you do to relax, do that. However, don't let it interfere with the work you have to do. If you do, it will just stress you out even more and not allow you to have that precious leisure time that is critical to your success in the grind. 
2. Surround yourself with positive people. This one can be tough at college, especially because of your roommate(s). Thankfully, I've got a pretty awesome roommate in Connor who can laugh with me in the face of looming deadlines and keep my spirits up by showing me the latest joke on Facebook. If you don't have the luxury of chill roommates, find other friends to fill that gap. I've got quite a few, including my Lifesong bandmates, but the best for this is Felicia. (warning: potentially sappy content ahead) There are times where I am in the worst of moods and just five or ten minutes with her will change it for the rest of the day. Granted, there's definitely some other things at work and it's not always a complete 180 when it happens, but the fact that she is able to brighten my day so easily definitely makes my life easier when I'm stressed. 
3. SLEEP. Sometimes the grind will make you forget that you need to rest at night. I know that binging your favorite show late at night seems relaxing now, but just you wait until the next day. Your body needs sleep more than you think, and if you don't get it you'll probably be more stressed than you already are by school. 
4. Pray and don't hold back when you do. One of the things that can often get lost in the business of school is your relationship with God. I know for me last year that was a big problem, and it hurt me a lot as the year went on. Thankfully, I was determined to not let that happen this fall, and one of the things I've changed is how I pray. I don't want to hide anything from God, so I just talk to Him like I would my dad. It seems a little too simple, but the more bare you are in front of God, the better you'll feel about the stress in your own life. I'm not saying it will go away completely, but if you tell God about it, it can reassure you of the fact that there's someone bigger than your stress in your corner fighting for you. 

That's all I've got for now. Hopefully you've got your own things that you do, and if not hopefully these have given you some ideas on how to get through the worst part of college. I'll be back with more for you soon, including a review of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them to come later this week. See ya.