Personal Reflection:

When taking Mastering College during my first semester of college, I did not realize at the time that time management and budgeting could be forms of self care. After my first year of college, I found that I was not as happy as I would have thought I would be. I had to seriously ask myself where my personal deficits were. While I was able to manage my academics and a student job, I found that I was missing experiences in some other areas of my life such as spending time with friends, seeking out group memberships with student clubs, and overall physical health. I would often wait until last minute to complete assignments and always felt like there was never enough time in the day.

When checking back in with Integrative Coach, I shared my self-assessment and we reviewed some tools once used in Mastering College. I remembered completing these activities, yet I never really applied them to my life. In my second year college, I found I was able to incorporate time management for a strategic balance in my life, while also folding in basic budgeting skills. For example, I joined one of our Zumba courses and enrolled with a few of my friends. We made it a habit to exercise together, which allowed us some shared quality time. I also engaged in some activities with our student clubs. While I did not officially join, I still felt more connected to my Dominican community. In shifting some of my focus and time, my activities increased as well as my personal sense of self. All of this was accomplished without spending additional money and strategically adding more to my savings. For my junior year, I look forward to becoming a trained Peer Mentor to not only potentially earn a great scholarship for school, but to more importantly give back to students who need additional support (like I once did).