Although the college workload may seem endless and relentless, it is always important to devote time to yourself—and trust me, it is a lot easier than you may think. In fact, I didn’t believe it until one of my friends physically forced me out of The Rock, where I’ve been guilty of spending too many unnecessary hours completing readings to its full extent or convincing myself there is still more work to be done. The hard part, however, is addressing the fear that taking time out of your day to do something that is not work related will coincide with some sort of academic consequence and you may ask yourself: is it really worth it? Similarly, it is difficult to carve out the appropriate times to take those breaks, and that, of course, varies for each person depending on their classes and extracurricular activities. What also inevitably varies are people’s interests, so something that may be fun for me, won’t be as appealing to someone else. Regardless, one of the best improvements that I have made in my college experience thus far is that I have made sure to commit at least one to two hours a day to something that I genuinely want to do, excluding meals, and honestly it has made such a big difference in my overall happiness and wellbeing while at school. Being able to extricate yourself from work and actually take a breather might even make you more productive when you restart working.
Here is a list of activities that I like to do, which are close to or on campus, and hopefully they can inspire others to take initiative and relax:
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Walk along Benefit Street to Benefit Juice Bar & Cafe
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Watch part of a movie or an episode of TV
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Go to the Nelson center for a workout or run outside
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Hangout with friends
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Play piano/music with friends or solo
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Shop and walk around Providence Place mall
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Go to Prospect Terrace Park, chill, and listen to music
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Join an extracurricular that you are passionate about
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Draw
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Cook a meal