Work & School: A Balancing Act

Recently I attended a leadership retreat on my school's campus. There was a great variety of people there (jazz club officers, newspaper editors, African student union, etc) all of which were, as chosen by their advisors or availability, there to represent their respective groups. The whole point was to mix, meet, and, learn cooperative measures to squeeze the most out of our groups. Also there were school administrators. Each gave a brief speech on what they did, their role in the retreat, and their hopes for us.

One speech that I found especially encouraging was from, you guessed it, a former non-traditional student. She, and I hope to track down her name sooner than later, was like a lot of us. She didn't go to college right out of high school. By her own account if she'd tried she wouldn't have been accepted ANYWHERE. Her SATs were below a thousand, she admitted. She didn't have a prayer.

She went to work. Like a lot of us, by her own admission, she realized she was spending a lot of time working for people who weren't as smart as she was (her words! haha). She got a job at the University of Pennsylvania. There she worked as a secretary to the dean of the nursing school and as a result was able to take classes at Penn at a greatly reduced rate.

Over the course of the next fifteen years she struggled. She spent many hours of her day on the Penn campus running back and forth between classes and work. But, after those fifteen years, she had her Bachelor's and, to top it off, a Masters in higher education. All that without the debt!

She admitted that there were tears. Tears and a lot of tough times. She gave us hints for handling the balancing act, I thought they were pretty good so I'd like to pass them along.

1. When it comes to school, work with your employer! She claimed that within the first week of classes, when she had all her syllabi, she went to the calendar. She figured out all the days she'd need off to study for exams, to write papers, to meet with study groups, etc. She then passed along all this information FOR THE WHOLE SEMESTER to her work superiors. It sent a pretty clear message that not only did she have it together but that she was serious about school. Your boss, if they're reasonable, want to see you succeed and will not stand in your way if your seriously committed. Show them that you are and they'll give you the respect and help you need.

2. Handle the stress! You can't tailor this to everyone. But, truth be told, you won't make it through in one piece if you can't figure out a way deal with the stress of the balancing act. She, and she was very candid about this, cried. She cried, big heaving sobs and, bless his heart, her husband listened. He knew that her letting out tears was part of the process for her. It was part of her success. You don't need to cry but, for your sake, find a healthy way to let it out.

3. Keep everyone informed! Like with your employer, those you care about need to know what's going on. If your spouse knows a month ahead of time that you have mid-terms coming up, they'll know (and more importantly UNDERSTAND) that it won't be the best time to join a couples bowling league.

4. Celebrate! Your successes don't mean much if you ignore them. Celebrate what you accomplish in your own way. So you're an adult and you hang your A+ paper on the fridge? Why not? You worked hard for that and a little praise will go a long way. As you get closer to your degree take stock in your accomplishments and recognize that you're doing a great thing for yourself and your loved ones. Also, try telling your employer about your academic successes. Let them be actively involved in what you accomplish. They, after all, if emotionally invested in you, can make your life a lot easier!