5 Things You Should Know Before Heading To College

So school's over and you are excited about college, aren’t you? Or maybe you have seen too many memes about how college-life is not at all how we all imagine it to be and are a bit anxious? Or maybe you are that really studious one who is looking forward to studying more and more? Whichever one you are, I guess you all need a little bit of a heads-up before the first serious reality check life's going to throw at you. Read on and prepare yourself for a complete roller-coaster ride that is on it’s way towards you!(Don’t worry, it’s less of a scare-show and more of an adventure)

1. When new in college, remember to feel okay to be lost. It's alright if you feel like you don’t fit in right on the first day or even during the whole of first year. You know why? Because everybody else in your class will be going through the same thing even if they act otherwise. So don’t bother if the first day doesn’t go as great as you thought it would because eventually you will feel as if you belong! Take it easy, be friendly and kind and trust the process. * smiles the wise-smile because hell yes I have been through that awkward phase too *

2. College is where you should, should and absolutely should explore your areas of interest other than just studies. This should be the time where you get up and start experimenting with anything and everything you like. This time you get is all about finding yourself and making a foundation for your future. It’s no secret that life is not all hearts and flowers and struggle exists no matter what you do. But here’s the thing- if you are doing something you really like then the struggle.. well it doesn’t go away but becomes much easier to deal with. So just always stay on the look out for what works for you and what doesn’t and experiment away to glory. Just be productive, do what makes you happy and live your life!

3. As you accustom yourself to college-life, a lot of new stuff will creep up in front of you as well. You will get more time to hang out with your friends and get to do lots of stuff together. I’d say that if you want to, don’t hesitate to try new things out. Explore, experience but also be responsible about it. Go visit new places but be sure to come back home safe. Explore food joints with your pocket money and find out which can be your potential hangout spot but don't eat out too much either. Try out new things, make memories- a hell load of them because this time in your life isn’t coming back and you ought to make it worth remembering in your own way.

4. Having made the above two points, I should also make you aware about not forgetting your basics. Do a hell lot of other things but also don’t forget why you are in your college in the first place. Not all lectures will interest you, not all professors will make it easier for you, heck, not all subjects will appeal to you but you should know what you got to do and act smart about it. Don’t forget to focus on your studies because yes they are pretty darn important whether you want to believe it or not. But again that doesn’t mean that you have to score a hundred percent in all your tests. There'll be good results and then there’ll be bad results too and it will all be okay. Take your time, learn from your mistakes and move on. And when you score amazing, don’t forget to stay grounded either. Please remember that nothing is constant, the good or the bad and be a smart-ass!

5. There will be times when college will feel like the most depressing thing to have happened to you.I will tell you why. We all start to grow up and reality hits us. We begin to worry about the future, get pressurized into doing shit load of assignments and projects, go through the trauma of writing tough examination papers and the worst of all- we find people being unfair to us most of the times. Classmates, professors and even laboratory assistants can get on your nerves sometimes. You see how everyone is a friend to you and yet not really one. Because no matter how much you want to deny, competition doesn’t stop existing after all. But here’s the thing that most forget and that is the simple fact that everybody has to look out for themselves because who else will? Everybody will act selfish after a certain point of time and that is just something you will have to make peace with. Friends and friendly professors will still be there though and eventually you will grow a defence mechanism to not let college take a toll on you and your peace.

So there you go! Remember these simple five anecdotes and you are all set to embark upon your new journey. You ought to realise that along with school your innocence too is bidding you goodbye and that is not necessarily a bad thing. The world's a very interesting place and college is going to be kind of like a prologue to that. Enjoy the chapter and trust me when I tell you, IT IS ALL GOING TO BE JUST FINE!