Finding Balance — My Hive and Academic Responsibilities

I never believed that studying in a university could be so demanding and strenuous. I used to envy my older cousins when I saw them put on their wigs and leave for school whenever they wanted. The fact that they wore mufti instead of a uniform was intriguing. I had imagined it to be simple and exciting.

When my turn came and I started attending lectures, it was initially exciting and fun. However, as time went on, I began to struggle to balance my studies, house chores, and social life.

I was the eldest girl at home at that time so I had a lot of responsibilities, such as taking care of my younger siblings, assisting in the shop, and doing the house chores. It wasn't too difficult though because my mother is understanding and caring, she was always there to assist me.

Everything took another dimension when I started living alone. At first, I was very excited to break free from my parents' watchful eyes so I embraced the freedom with all my heart and aimed for a stress-free life.

What I didn't know was that freedom does come with its own set of challenges.
I became overwhelmed with it and later found challenges in managing my space, time, and money.
Everything was suddenly on my shoulders. No one was there to help me make decisions or remind me to study and do chores as before.

It was hard but I later managed to escape the looming depression. I set some goals to balance my daily activities and regain control of my life.

My studies were supposed to be my priority, according to the goals I set, followed by Hive. Unfortunately, I ended up neglecting my studies and spending more time on online activities. At some point, I became really worried about my procrastination habits because I knew that prioritizing my hive activities could have negative consequences for me.

To address this, I started to be more mindful of my activities and my life in general. The challenge I faced was that Hive is more of a passion for me, and I find a lot of pleasure in it. It's hard to balance it with academic activities. However, I realized that both are my responsibilities and there needs to be a balance between the two.

The first step I took was writing down my study goals. This time, I created weekly milestones to help me stay focused and consistent.

I would say that my daily activities are spontaneous but it's organized in a daily to-do list. By writing them down I know the most important things that must be accomplished while still enjoying my day.

I know this hasn't created a perfect balance for me yet, but it has helped me a lot. I am no longer burdened by the thoughts of failing in my studies or neglecting Hive. I believe there’s still room for improvement as life is all about growth and becoming a better version of ourselves.

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If you have read to this point, thank you. I appreciate your time and support.

The images are of my friend, I took the pictures myself for her birthday. I only used it here on her permission.