3 Life Lessons I Have Learned

by Katie Flood

My time in Chicago has been precious. Each moment has been filled with learning experiences that are helping me grow. One of the most important things that I have learned, or more so, that I am continuing to learn, is the importance of time management. I’ve always been the type of person who has been very on top of things and have, for the most part, had good time management skills. However, my schedule in Chicago is very different from what I am used to, and I’ve had to make a few adjustments because of that.

1. Sleep

          Since I have to leave for work around 8:30 in the morning I have had to adjust my sleeping schedule. While on campus, I was normally able to go to bed between 12 and 1am, I will usually hit the hay between 10:30 and 11:30. I know this probably makes me sound very lame, but being exhausted at work is not fun.
2. Homework

          When I was at school, I was able to get homework done in large chunks on days where I would only have one class, or during large gaps between classes. Work life is different. The majority of my work has to get done on the weekends because I can only manage to do a little homework on the days during the week when I am working. I’ve had to adjust my study habits in order to accommodate my new lifestyle.

3.  Me Time

          Being in a new city is exciting, full of adventure, but also vastly overwhelming at times. What I’ve realized is that it is important to take time to be by yourself. I’ve gotten into the habit of leaving for class on Wednesdays and hour or so earlier than I need to. Then, I have time to just walk around the Loop area for a bit. Sometimes I go to the post office, or do other errands. Most of the time I end up grabbing coffee from Intelligentsia, one of my favorite coffee shops in the city. This is time that I look forward to, and I am glad that I have realized its importance.

I’m still continuing to learn how to be an adult in the “real world,” and Chicago Semester is helping me bridge the gap between college and career. I’m looking forward to seeing how much I have grown and learned at the end of the semester, but for now, I’m glad I have figured out the importance of sleep, adjusting my study habits, and Me Time.