By Jhihara Marie Krishna Mamon
Pressure. In physics, it is commonly defined as the result of the amount of force being acted on a certain area measurement. If a large amount of force is applied on a small measurement of an object’s area, pressure is greater resulting to stress and worse, deterioration of the said object. The logic behind the principle of pressure does not only apply on physically seen objects. Undeniably, being in school also has its own way of applying its certain amount of force to us students – the beings which are the area of our teachers’ object.
School pressure. In my own experience, this kind of pressure is so much alive when I am being pushed beyond my limit and capacity with it comes to the activities, responsibilities and expectations that are handed by the academe to me as a student. This of course involves sleepless nights, lots and lots of multitasking, countless compromising and more to that, sacrifice. Take it from me who almost failed too many subjects because of juggling projects, assignments, forcing myself to understand a certain lesson over and over again and handling school activities. Believe it or not, we are all expected to excel in our studies. Some have the capacity and the ability to handle the stress being inclined with this said school pressure while others don’t and have the tendency of failing a subject or more or even having mental and emotional breakdowns that might affect their growth and learning. They, for one, could not fathom the fact of failure and fear the thought of not advancing. Facing school pressure is one thing but overcoming and surviving it is another.
There are a lot of ways on how to handle school pressure. One can actually easily search it on the internet but not all could apply it. As an average student, I for myself had come up with ways on how to balance the said activities and projects and all.
- Baby steps
We all know how we cram with school works everytime we come near our “deadliest deadlines”. Having a head start on doing our assignments and projects would always be a great help. Honestly speaking, I was not really a fan of finishing it all earlier than my classmates. One thing that helped me get through it though was having to start small with my projects and homework. Doing it one step at a time would give one a space to breathe and plan for the next step. It’s definitely okay to start slow. What would matter is how and when you finish it, right? Be accurate on how you want it to be done, what you want to be done and when you want it to be done. By doing it one at a time, goals are clearly established well and foundations with regards to your work are being built. After all, this isn’t a race. Deadlines are given rationally. Seeing progress in your works are definitely an achievement. Start small, progress slowly and finish surely.
- Breathe in. Breathe out.
Frankly speaking, you can always PAUSE. Not stop, but pause. Some have misconceptions when it comes to pausing progress. In my own opinion and experiences, pausing is a way of giving yourself time to breathe in and out. It helps you set your goals straight again if ever things start crumbling down due to pressure. Allowing your body and thoughts to rest is a big help in finishing an activity. Rest until you’re good to go again. Risking your mental and emotional health for school works will result to more unproductive days. Purse balance and clear things out. Take a break. It’s okay.
- Reinforcements
When it comes to academics, pride is not a friend. Asking for help and assistance is not a bad thing to do. Your friends, classmates, and more to that, your teachers are always there to help you if ever you have queries and you need extra hands on a certain project. Having to understand and subtract work load is definitely a great help in dispersing school pressure. Not only would it be an overwhelming feeling for you to see a certain work done efficiently and on time but it would also be a compliment for your colleagues to let them know that they too were also a part of your achievements.
4. Reward yourself.
Reward yourself from time to time when you have finished a step or an activity. May it be a cup of coffee, food, booze, sleep, or even a stick of cigar. You have done a great job in setting your goals. You have done a great job in fighting pressure off. You have done a great job in finishing strong. Even for the finished worked that is mediocre at best, I must say, you have done a great job in just having the thought and the time of finishing it all. We all deserve to be rewarded. If it ain’t from others, rewards must come from ourselves.
Funny as it sounds, doing this article is one of the results of pressure. May this work be an example to you that no matter how hard things get, you can always take baby steps, breathe in, breathe out, call for reinforcements and reward yourself after. The secret here is making challenges as your advantage. The moment you have done and have seen progress despite the hardships, you’ll know that things can always be done.