Work-Life Balance Is Daunting, But Doable
As a student, the juggling act of balancing work and school life can be a daunting challenge. The demands of coursework, exams, and assignments often clash with the need to earn money and gain professional experience. But with careful planning, effective time management, and a supportive network, it is possible to successfully navigate this delicate balance. I decided to turn to some of my fellow working students to see how this semester has gone so far.
Zachary Horner is a first-year Politics, Government, and Law here at Arcadia. He is on the men’s swim team and lifeguards at the pool. I asked him what his job entails. “Usually unless there’s people on the team [swimming], I’m able to just sit on the side and do schoolwork, which means it’s a very chill job,” he said. I wondered how he is able to balance all this work. “I only work a few hours a week and that, honestly, gives me a good amount of time to do a lot of my homework,” he said. “Since I’m only a freshman, my classes aren’t that hard, so I have quite a lot of free time outside of class and swim practice.” I was interested in how he handles all of this, especially when he gets stressed. “The way I reduce stress is to plan things out. I hate not knowing things, so I put everything I am doing into my calendar and all of my tasks into my planner so I know what I need to do and how to plan out my time.”
Mia Montevirgen is a second-year Data Science major. She works in the theater department as an advanced scene shop assistant, on the IT Help Desk, and as a tutor for the Learning Resource Network. Obviously, I wanted to know how she is able to handle it all. “I balance my school and social life with my job by doing my homework during my jobs when I can. I also try to schedule myself so that I am done by 5 pm. That way I can have evenings to relax and hang out.” How did she figure out what works for her? “I’ve learned from other people that you need to set time aside for yourself and time to socialize, so I make it a point to set aside time for myself or my friends and separately to do my work.” The last question I asked Mia was how she is able to deal with the stress of so much work (school or jobs) all the time. She said, “To reduce stress, again by setting time aside myself, I know I have a moment to unwind. I give myself at least an hour before going to bed to watch a show, read, or being with the people I like really makes life better. I try to keep my work separate from my social life. Living in the moment instead of dragging work along with every step I take is something really important to me.”
Balancing work and school life is undoubtedly a challenging endeavor, but it’s not impossible. With careful planning, time management, effective communication, and self-care, you can successfully navigate the demands of both worlds. Remember that it’s okay to seek help and make adjustments as needed to maintain a healthy work-school-life balance. Ultimately, finding that equilibrium will lead to a more fulfilling and productive student experience.
