Welcome to the AEO Onward blog! Right now, I’m in a strange transitional period as one chapter of my life ends and the next one begins. On one hand, I still have a week before I have to be back on campus, while on the other hand many of my friends have already left for soph training. As I look back on my first year and forward into my second, I want to highlight one theme I’ve learned through it all: balance.
Balance was something that I’ve been struggling with ever since I arrived at Western last year. It felt like wherever I went, I had to adapt to the situation and make sure that my routine and lifestyle was still sustainable. As we move into next year, I want to reflect on how I’ve balanced the past year as well as what’s to come.
Jumping In as a Freshman
As a first year enrolled in Engineering with AEO, I knew I had my work cut out for me. Maintaining a competitive average and being involved in extracurriculars (EC’s) that I enjoyed made me quickly realize that I needed to step up my game from high school. Just because I did well with minimal effort beforehand doesn’t mean that I can work the same in a higher-stakes environment, and I found out right away that my previous routine wasn’t going to work.
After trying a variety of different methods, I realized that spending all my time on academics and EC’s isn’t good for my mental or physical health; even though I’m stressed about the workload, I needed time for friends, hobbies and breaks. I really want to emphasize the common but important saying: work smarter not harder. For me, this meant finding the suitable environments and strategies that allowed me to finish my work efficiently and with quality, letting me spend time on activities outside of school.
In the end, I spent many hours in certain study spots around the Engineering buildings and residence study rooms, while taking frequent breaks (shoutout Perth Hall pool table). I finished my first year pleased with where I was and how I used my very limited time, and to any incoming first years: figure out what works for you, or you will struggle quite a bit come exam season and crunch time!
Transitioning into Full-Time
Heading into the summer, I knew that time management was going to be difficult. With a 9-to-5 internship in downtown Toronto, work along with the commute would total over 10 hours daily, taking up most of my day. Immediately, my balance was not sustainable: by wanting to do so much, I simply was not sleeping enough to get through the work day and stay healthy. I've never consistently slept so little as in that first week of work, and this situation was something I had to adapt to ASAP. No matter how busy we are, sleep is never worth sacrificing for, and the physical and mental detriment that comes with low sleep is very real and unhealthy.
After clearly understanding how much time I had each day to do things, I then found the balance that I was looking for. Sometimes I would see my friends during my lunch at work, or sometimes I'd set aside time in the evening to do what I wanted with my hobbies. I recognized the importance of sleep, breaks and being realistic with my time this summer, as I set a bar too high with everything I wanted to do. Not living up to my expectations was a big challenge, but I learned quickly to focus on the progress I’m making and my achievements instead of what I haven’t accomplished. Overall, finding this balance was extremely challenging but genuinely rewarding, as I eventually figured out how to balance a proper 9-5 with my loved ones.
Ultimately, my experience as a Digital Marketing intern was incredible, as I was working in a recruitment company that had no marketing department prior to my onboarding. I had the creative liberty to schedule, create, and post content across their socials, building a fresh and modern brand that fit the audience they were targeting. In a way, it felt like I was filling a blank canvas with possibilities, and I’ve learned a whole new set of skills pertaining to market analysis along the way.
Moving Into Next Year
Now as the next school year approaches, I’m going to be playing yet another careful game of balance, especially because I’m excited to work part-time while going through school. I will have to carefully balance that with second year software engineering, but this opportunity provides me with income to spend on food and living expenses, which is freedom that I truly value.
Most of all though, I’m ready for another exciting year living with and seeing my friends daily. A big part of the reason why I thoroughly enjoyed my first year was due to being able to room with one of my best friends, and having so many unexpected experiences with him and everyone in my residence. I will never forget the many interesting times that our double room housed four people, or the late night interactions I’ve had walking through the building seeing who else was awake.
All in all this year is going to be a great one, filled with many more balancing acts but lots of fun along the way. Assuming the role of Co-Editor for the AEO Onward Blog makes me excited for what’s to come, as it was such a big part of why I enjoyed my freshman year so much. Let’s push forward into a fantastic 23-24 school year!