Balance, Comparison, & Survival

Clubs, community service, AP classes, sports, work. How do high school students balance it all? I am currently a sophomore in high school and do all of these things. Saying that I accomplish all of these things on a day to day basis is a lot easier than actually doing them. 

Burn out terrifies me as it does a lot of other students who juggle so many different things. There is a constant pressure on teens to not only accomplish all of these things but excel in them, while also having social lives, and spending time with their families. 

Comparison is also a factor that I deem the biggest pressure on teens. I find myself looking around constantly at other students that are my age and see them doing so much. I compare myself to them and wonder why I am not doing everything that they are. However, those same people might be looking at my life wondering how I manage to balance everything in my life. No one's life is how it seems, and everyone is struggling. 

The only way that you are going to be able to survive high school is through finding out what works best for you. Your hardest work is the most that you can do. Push yourself, but believe that you are doing enough and you are not behind. 

- Sophiea, R., 10th Grade