I just got my full schedule for next semester and it is crazy. I’m afraid it will feel like I have a 9-5 job when I should be enjoying my college life. How do I balance my school and work responsibilities?

Being a full-time student while working part-time can be tough. I know the struggle of getting off a late shift and having to study immediately after; it is never fun. Balancing work and classes can be difficult, but there are a few steps you can take to create some harmony.

Try talking to your boss about shifting your hours around or dropping a few to make your schedule less demanding. Not all bosses are willing to do this, but if they understand you are a student and have other commitments, they may make an exception. Talk to your coworkers about switching shifts as well. If your hours line up well enough, this could be an easy fix. (Make sure to run this by your boss, they won’t be happy if you suddenly start showing up at different times.) In my opinion, if you aren’t working to pay for college, your school work should come before your job. It is ideal to have a little extra money in your pocket each month. However, if you think working will make your schedule too hectic, you may want to consider quitting or looking for a new position that requires less hours.

In college you are expected to be an adult, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to have fun. Not everyone is able to have that luxury, but if you can do so without any real consequences, you should take advantage of that.

-Sally Seahawk

There is a girl in my class that I am interested in. I don’t know her that well, but I would like to. I want to ask her out, but I’m afraid she won’t find me attractive or will think I’m weird. How I do I get over my fear of rejection?

Everyone has their own preferences on what they find attractive. The trait that you hate the most about yourself could be the thing that makes someone gravitate towards you. Never be afraid to tell someone how you feel. As humans, one of the things we regret the most as we grow older is missed connections. It can be hard to make yourself vulnerable by putting yourself out there, but you will never know what someone thinks about you until you ask.

Rejection is scary, but I can guarantee you that it is worth the risk. You may be scared that you will get rejected with a laugh in the face or mean words, but I can assure you the worst that could happen is that person saying “No, I’m not interested.” The rejection may sting a bit, but you will be able to move on. If for some reason this person does reject you with a laugh or mean words, then you dodged a bullet. Anyone who thinks it okay respond to your feelings in such a negative way is not worth your time.

In the end, it is in your best interest to put yourself out there. It is very possible that this girl will reject you. It may not be because of you, it could be because she doesn’t want to be in a relationship right now or a plethora of different reasons. All you can really do is let your feelings be known, and hope for the best.

-Sally Seahawk

My sleeping schedule is a wreck. I find myself going to bed super late and not being to wake up on time to get to class. How can I fix this?

Having a set sleeping schedule is important for everyone. The sleeping schedule you have now is not sustainable. If you don’t change it while you can, it may have a negative effect on your health. With finals right around the corner, you need to fix this ASAP.

You may want to try doing what I like to call a ‘hard reset’ over the weekend. If you don’t have much going on this weekend, go to sleep at your usual time on Friday but set an alarm for 7am. It doesn’t matter what time you go to sleep, you must force yourself to get up by 7 a.m. Place your alarm across the room, get up and go for a jog, take a shower, whatever you need to do to wake up. After that, the hard part is over. Next, you need to stay awake until an ample sleeping time, 8 p.m.-9 p.m. should suffice. Throughout the day you won’t have much energy, but you can’t just stay at home and veg out on the couch because you will fall asleep. Be productive throughout the day. For example, you can catch up on chores, do some homework, hang out with friends, or do some shopping. There are a lot of low-energy activities you can do to keep yourself occupied without wearing yourself out. By the time you go to bed you will be exhausted, but you need to set another alarm so that you don’t fall back into the same cycle. You don’t need to get up as early as 7 a.m. Around 9 a.m.-10 a.m. is a good time to wake up the next day. You will be able to get plenty of sleep and stay awake until its time go to bed.

This method should give you a good start to resetting your schedule so that you can go to bed and wake up on time. However, it is up to you to continue with this practice. It’s very easy to fall back into a bad sleeping schedule after doing it once. You must have the willpower to create a better lifestyle for yourself.

-Sally Seahawk