It’s that time of the year when freshly admitted students, aka the fucchas, are well accustomed to their college life. They’ve probably attended the college fresher’s welcome, now looking forward to the unofficial ones with couple entry passes and free booze.
At this point of time, we have to know that the stage of life we are in often called the transition point. As we move from the protected environment of our schools and homes into the bona-fide-do-what-you-like college and hostels, we realize that we are going to experience a lot of new things in this phenomenal time. Gawky school teenagers with braces and thick glasses transform into beautiful girls with long, shiny hair and long legs. The lanky, hairy guys suddenly metamorphose into tall hunks.
Before you get distracted by all these descriptions, let me tell you that college is also a time of learning and experiencing things you could never have imagined. You are put in situations and circumstances which require to change your priorities and erase your boundaries, still not forgetting to make rational decisions. Not to scare you, but in the midst of this rat race you must also never lose track of what your goals are and who you want to be in the long run. Sounds like a huge challenge, doesn’t it?
Here’s a list of top 10 life experiences a student gets to have during his or her college life.
1. Believe in yourself
Lastly, but most importantly, it is necessary to never let go of your ambitions, your career goals, your dreams and you. In this college life madness, you tend to lose out on a lot of friends and personality attributes in order to be socially accepted by the peer group. You must never compromise on your principles and trust your gut instincts and intuition. Believe that you are the best, and be bold enough to show it to the rest of the world!
2. Street smart setting
Wanting to gain knowledge about getting work done from people with the least effort possible? That’s called being street smart, or what in India is known as “jugaad”. This small little skill is not exactly a life experience, but it helps from the point of view of giving you a competitive edge vis-a-vis your peer group. To be able to successfully negotiate someone to your advantage is a skill hugely coveted by many.
3. Confidence, courage and communication
Also known as the three C’s of entrepreneurship, these attributes will take you far in life, even if you’re not going into a commerce background. Learning how to tackle the not-so-friendly college professors with the utmost diligence just for that extra mark in your internals is an experience you can gain solely from college. This will get you the confidence which will greatly benefit you in the long run!
4. Work hard, party harder
Driven to succeed and compete in every aspect of life, the fresh high school graduates are keen to make it Zuckerberg-big at a young agee. College isn’t just about hard work and getting ahead in the rat race. It’s about enjoying life at large, and learning to sometimes let go of situations which are beyond one’s control. It’s also important to enjoy yourself once in a while, as some students become so career oriented and chasing their goals that they forget what college life memories are really all about. The friends, the gossip, the eating out, the partying, and even the bunking!
5. Choices, choices everywhere
As elaborated earlier, choices are plentiful and abundant during college years. There’s a lot to choose from, but what’s important is the choice you make. Do not lose perspective of what you really want in the long run, and always keep that in mind whenever you have to make some tricky choices. Ditch that newly released movie hitting the theatres this Friday to work for your classroom presentation sometimes. If you’re overworked, take a break and do the opposite instead. But assess your options well!