The Grand Finale

It was like standing in the center of the stage in front of a large audience waiting for the curtains to open. I was waiting to make my last appearance before the crowd. That anticipating moment was practically mimicked walking out of my last exam and into my winter break.

I finally made it through the first semester of my first year at Carleton University - what an accomplishment. Though I wish I would have documented the stages I went through on how to get through exams without an overwhelming panic.

However, I did learn very much from my experience. I learned that it is important to plan ahead, no and I don't mean start three days before and decide to get notes to all the classes you miss. I think you should start from day one. Start making study notes, start becoming increasingly familiar with your work. I find it very useful to start at the beginning, because at the end when you're struggling to understand concepts at the last minute it deters you from studying properly.

The best advice I ever received: As soon as you get an assignment or learn a new concept, make sure you understand it right away. Don't ever wait. If you understand what you have to do right away and you put together the resources you need in order to complete the assignment or in order to study, you leave the option to start whenever you want. This leaves room for proper time management. If you've anticipated how long it will take you to study or do the assignment you can manage your time better instead of waiting the last minute to look the assignment over and realizing you don't understand parts of it or it might take you longer than you thought. This is never good and this is one of the most common mistakes that people make.

There is no doubt that some people can pull it off. They can wait to the last minute to study and do great, they can begin an assignment the night before and pull of a 90, but reality check - it's not everyone. The biggest problem I also find with a lot of students, even myself, is comparing your self. Yes, it is tough, when you study and work your guts out and your friend waits until the night before and they do better than you. This royally sucks, but in the end who learns the skills, who knows that they've worked hard and accomplished something.

University is not only about the marks or the freedom and social life, its about learning. Learning lessons for the future. It is so important that you work hard and push yourself to limits you would have never even thought of, because in the end you reep the benefits. If it's one thing I learned that will stick with me forever, it's that no matter what you do in life as long as you're learning and getting better that is all that matters - progression. No one is the same, there is always someone better and someone worse, but as long as you're not in the same place you were yesterday -that makes all the difference.

I leave you with one quote that always sticks in my mind when I feel accomplished or motivated:

"The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person’s determination."

I'm not exactly sure who said it, but anytime you feel like low or unmotivated or restless, think about the possibilities that are right there in front of you, and then think again.