There is a proper way to spend summer vacation, but it is not a universal thing. Some of us will get a summer job, some will take summer classes, some will go off and volunteer, some will go out of town and some won’t leave their room.

Work is fine, but we do that all of the time. The chance to just sit back and relax doesn’t come around too often, and we need to take advantage of it while we still can.

There is a big difference between working hard and working smart. Anyone one can work hard; it doesn’t require a plan or even a goal. All that it really does require is an Energizer Bunny-like motor and something to do. But we should not have to work all the time. Even the hardest of workers requires a break.

Working smart on the other hand is much more difficult. To work smart you must have a goal and a simple, direct and efficient plan to acquire that goal whatever it may be. You must work to reach that goal as fast as possible. And once you do, then you can stop. Smart workers always leave themselves time to relax. The both of these can be used in the life of the student, but wouldn’t you much rather get your work done and stop.

Summer is coming up fast and you need to be sure that you are not only excited for it, but prepared for it. Summer gives us the opportunity for a lot of down time and it should be used and used properly.

Down time is not something that should be given up, it should be cherished. That means that we need to take time to do what we love. Use the off time during the summer to make yourself happy. After all of the stress that comes with an entire year of school, we deserve it.

Students have a lot on their plate, and we deserve to take a break. We have been in classrooms  since August. We have a break for a simple reason, if we aren’t given that break we will keel over due to stress. Chronic stress can lead to health problems, physical and mental. These health issues if gone unaddressed can have serious effects.

We have to end the attitude that if you are always working and running at 110 percent capacity then you are somehow lazy. We are only human, and need to take a break. We often think of resting as wasting time. The only way that you are improving yourself is by working. These are both ideas that are false and need to stop. It is known that being overwhelmed or overworked can lead to stress, and it is also known that stress is destructive to our bodies both emotionally and physically.

The point of college should be to take classes to prepare you to do something that you will love. The simple fact of being in school for this amount of time is an act of self improvement. Getting a summer job to grab a some bucks is a great idea, but you should never be putting too much on  your plate.

College is an incredibly stressful time, the pressure to do well, the new amount of school work which is completely different than previously experienced, being accepted into a new social circle and possibly throwing a job on top of it. Stress can kill you, and if we as college students don’t take time to for some rest, relaxation, fun and maybe even a vacation, then it will.

Take a trip, have some fun and make a few memories. We’ve earned them. This is the time that is to be used to celebrate all of the time that was spent working our fingers to the bone. Writing, adding, building and learning.

I’m not saying that summer jobs, volunteering and summer classes  are bad ideas.A lot of people might need any number of those things. But it is always best to make sure that these things are done only if you want to and not because you feel that you have to.

Time is an incredibly valuable thing and it is true that it should not be wasted, but stopping, resting and doing nothing for a bit is not wasting time it is a very important thing that should be scheduled out for everyone.

No matter what you do this summer, be sure to enjoy it. There are not a lot of opportunities in life to truly sit back and do what you love for an extended period of time. We are incredibly privileged to have the opportunity to take 3 months off. You can’t do those kind of things at a job, so be sure to take advantage of it while you still can.