Going back to school can be overwhelming for anyone, especially students going to a new campus or school entirely. Luckily, no matter the classes they take or extra-curricular activities they participate in, every student can apply these basic habits in their everyday lives. Good habits go hand-in-hand with reaching goals. Striving for growth and self-discipline in small everyday habits are the keys to success in high school.
Some find this first habit easy and prioritize it, and others find it very difficult: sleep. The human body’s most important healthy habits are eating, sleeping, and drinking. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that teenagers between ages 13-18 should get eight to ten hours of sleep per night. As for eating and drinking, lacking proper nutrition and dehydration can greatly affect a student’s performance. Consuming a range of vitamins, healthy fats, proteins, and carbohydrates is optimal for brain and body productivity. Many students don’t feel hungry or thirsty when they wake up in the mornings, and some don’t eat a sufficient amount of food until noon. Skipping breakfast is a big mistake, while a very common one. Ideally, one should drink 20 ounces of water within the first 30 minutes of waking, and eat a breakfast rich with carbohydrates, for energy, and fruits, for the right vitamins to start their day. Exercise also fuels the brain and body. Most students play sports, but those who don’t can miss out on the benefits of exercise. “Exercise improves mood… boosts energy… and promotes better sleep,” the Mayo Clinic reports. Even a quick 20-minute walk before starting one’s homework helps increase focus and brain productivity. Balancing homework and planning ahead are the key to success. To achieve one’s goals, students must practice these habits on a daily basis. Students are often asked to set goals in the beginning of the year, but most teachers never explain how to get there. Reaching a big goal is simply the result of daily discipline with seemingly tedious habits. Starting small is key. If a student knows they don’t possess the time-management skill, they should first buy a pocket-sized planner. From there, they can begin to lay the groundwork for great time-management and planning skills they could even reach by the end of the year. The phrase, “get 1% better each day, and only 1%,” from the book Atomic Habits, by James Clear, has helped many students set and strive toward their goals. The best thing to do is set attainable and maintainable goals. Think: reasonable and realistic. Everyone’s goals will be different, tailored to their own schedule, interests, and capabilities. Therefore, goals shouldn’t be compared, and each student should consistently strive to meet their own, achieving big success, using the aforementioned small, daily habits to get there.
