OPINION: Being stressed has become synonymous with being successful. There’s a sense of pride that coincides with only sleeping four hours, having three exams in a week or seeing a stacked Google Calendar. If you’re exhausted by the weekend, it can feel like proof that you’re accomplishing what you need to be.
Every semester, students return to campus with new schedules, goals and a long list of things they want to accomplish. We talk about what classes we are taking, what organizations we joined and what we hope to do after graduation. I think about how when we ask each other, “How are classes going?” the response immediately becomes a to-do list. I almost never hear, “I’m proud of myself. I worked hard and I did well.”
On a campus filled with ambitious students, it is easy to measure our accomplishments and perceived dedication in comparison to others. Unfortunately, a strong semester just becomes preparation for an even stronger one. A great internship can be a reason to start looking for the next one. A good grade is followed by worrying about the next exam. Rather than taking time to celebrate our wins we start to consider whether or not they’d make a good highlight reel.
It’s almost like we seek out overwhelm as evidence that we take advantage of opportunities. However, being overwhelmed does not mean you’re optimizing productivity. Students tend to measure productivity by output volume, without considering if it’s meaningful or quality work. What success may actually look like is knowing when the addition of another commitment would hinder meaningful contributions to existing obligations.
We can care deeply about our grades, careers and futures without making exhaustion the measure of our dedication. Sure, our campus has resources dedicated to student well-being, but building a healthier campus also depends on the culture that students create for one another. If exhaustion is treated as a sign of commitment, it becomes harder for students to admit to themselves and each other when they’re struggling or need to slow down.
Learning our limits and how to take care of ourselves is part of preparing for a successful life beyond college. Our future employers, graduate programs and careers will ask a lot of us. They will not, however, benefit from our learned ability to function while overburdened.
We should work hard. We should challenge ourselves and each other. We should care about what we accomplish. However, learning our limits and how to resist the pressure to constantly exceed them could be the largest accomplishment we take from the University of Maine.
