Even though we have all of these exams and hard deadlines, it is still really important to make time for the people in your life. Maintaining a good school-life balance is really important to being successful. However, it can be difficult to find time to spend with your friends. Many of our excuses for not having time to hang out with friends are because we have to study for a big test or we might have a big presentation the next day. That can easily be solved by finding a friend to study with. Juhi Ghatti, ‘25, says, “it gets really hard to go study other places so we just Facetime.” You don’t always need to go out to a cafe or library, sometimes the best work is done at home while you’re on Facetime with your friend. Studying with friends can be a really easy way to get in that quality time while still getting your work done. If your friends are taking the same class as you it can be really beneficial because if you get stuck on your work you can ask your friend for some help and even if you are both stuck you can work together to find the answer to the problem.
Sometimes we are studying for hours on end and inevitably get burnt out. A way to combat this is to make small plans with your friends. Jacob Roach, ‘26, likes to take a fun approach to taking breaks and gets his friends to play Marvel Rivals with him. If you are all studying for something and can’t hang out for a long period of time it’s nice to do small things to give your brain a break. This can include things like going for a walk or getting food together. This time allows you to catch up with your friends and to get a much needed break from the school stress.
One activity that Ghatti does with her friends is going ice skating. She says that “it’s really big for [her] stress-wise because [she] is focused on skating and nothing else.” Focusing on one of your interests can also help reduce stress when it comes to your other classes.
Getting good grades is important but so is having time to unwind and hang out with the important people in your life. Next time you are feeling drained or unmotivated, give your friend a call and make some plans. You never know how much it will help you in the long run.
