Getting the Gerbil Out of the Wheel

Life doesn’t lend itself to finding balance. You finish one project, and another one’s waiting in the sidelights. You do something poorly, and you deride yourself for not being more conscientious. You do something well, and you find yourself slated for higher loads of work.

If you’re feeling like a gerbil in a metal wheel, take a breather. Here’s three ways to try and find some balance in life:

1) Build some free-time into your day.

Let’s face it: if you let them, work and school will take over your life. One helpful way to approach your day is to map out what your ideal day would look like. A friend of mine made having evenings at home a priority. She decided to get up around 5AM to get to school early, put in a full day, then have time leftover at night to be a homebody. Realize what’s most important to you, and budget time for it. You know what it is that restores your sense of satisfaction in life: a trip to Coldstone, a quick call to a friend, an hour-long run beneath the stars. Make time for those things: they’re the stuff life is made of. Also, be realistic about the time certain tasks take, so you’re not caught by surprise. This will increase the odds of your plans working out. Also, beyond the end-of-the-day activities, think about ways you can couple dull or demanding tasks with fun rewards during your day. As your writing a lab report, reward yourself as you complete each section. You might be surprised at how this turns an otherwise painful process into something enjoyable.

2) Make love of life, not guilt, your primary motivator.

You are more than what you do. Simple fact. There will always be times when you fall short, either because of a lack of understanding, a lack of effort, or even circumstances beyond your control. Learn from these things, but don’t dwell on them beyond their expiration date. Think about it: you don’t continue chewing a piece of gum beyond a certain point. You also shouldn’t continue chewing a circumstance beyond a certain point! I certainly have a tendency to use words like “should have, could have, and would have.” Lately, though, I’ve been trying to rework the way I look at mistakes. When I think of them as experiments, I’m able to think of them more objectively. OK, so things didn’t work out so well in that instance. Well, what were the factors that contributed to the failure? How can I avoid them in the future? What are better alternatives I can pursue? This approach uses the past constructively, with a steady focus on the present. Ultimately, (as my mom has often reminded me) life is too short to dwell on the past. You’ll be happier and everyone around you will be happier if you concentrate on living your life in the present.

3) Map out a rhythm to your life.

Jazz streaming from a nearby car. Rain beating on a window pane. The sun rising on a bright new day. Life is full of rhythms. Take advantage of that by building some rhythm into your day. Sure, all-nighters happen, but they don’t have to happen every night! If you set aside certain times of the day for certain tasks, you’ll see that over time it gets easier to get things done. It’s not your imagination that adopting a regular sleep cycle makes you feel more rested: there’s such a thing as circadian rhythms! In the same way, if you figure out a regular time for meals, laundry, cleaning and exercise, you’ll find that the other things in life will fit in much more naturally. There will always be life crises lying in wait for you, but the less self-induced crises you have, the better! For those things you want to budget time for, but always find yourself running behind on, do you know someone else you can do them with? Can you find an exercise or laundry buddy you can build a weekly schedule with? The accountability and committed time–not to mention the fun time spent together–can help keep you on task. You can even set up Google Calendar to send you reminders, if you like!

As you take on the challenge of a new semester, learn from your past mistakes, and keep looking forward! Put these three strategies to use, and good luck with all your studies!