By JaMiyah Cameron
Aliceville High School
Whether we know it or not, high school is an important time of our lives. It serves as a middle stage for us. Your high school years are the stage between being a little kid and a young adult. It is a time of maturation, which helps prepare you for the outside world. Not everyone shares the same experience, but we all can agree that we learned valuable lessons in high school. This is when you become more independent with decision making. If I could go back to the seventh grade, there are some major things I would make sure I fully understood and was already practicing before entering the doors of high school.
Time management is a very important key to being successful. It’s important that you are organized and do things in a timely manner. Before high school, I did not use planners at all. I thought the planners given to us by our school was inessential. I soon realized that those planners would make my high school career so much better. Writing out homework assignments, big projects, and due dates helps me keep track of all of my classes now. It is normal for people to forget things, but it’s not good when you receive a bad grade for forgetting to do a project. It has been proven that writing something down increases your chances of remembering it. It is very important that you give yourself enough time to do the things that you need to. As a current dual enrollment student, my life is a little hectic at times. Balancing my high school and college classes is one of my main focuses now. This is why I map out a schedule where I am able to spend an equal amount of time on both. Without a set schedule you won’t be able to get things done effectively and efficiently.
Procrastination is a major problem with modern day teens. If I could go back, I would most definitely practice being more productive ahead of time. It has been proven that the best work is that in which a great amount of time and effort was put into it. Rushing the night before to do an assignment or complete a project will not reflect your best work. High school has taught me to give things the proper amount of time needed to be completed and revised. There have been multiple times where I didn’t do my best work because I waited too late to start on it. As a soon to be college student it’s important that I do my best in all of my classes so that I will be successful.
Last but not least, I would tell my younger self that it is okay to express myself and push my limits. I am a firm believer in not settling for less. It took me a while for me to truly express myself because I felt people wouldn’t like me. Once I began to talk more freely about my opinions and likes, I made great bonds with people I never would have expected too. I am a person who loves a challenge, so I try to push myself beyond the normal limits. This helps prepare me for college and the workplace. There will be lots of times where I am asked or expected to think outside of the box.
Growing up and going through school has taught me a lot of well needed lessons. These will follow me for the rest of my life. I can apply the things I have learned in my personal life and future career. These skills will help me to continue to stay sharp and effective. I plan to become a very successful business owner one day in the future. This requires organization, time management, and most of all determination. The results vary based on whether or not you are willing to put in the time and effort in.
