While balance is essential to your overall well-being, in today’s competitive society it is difficult to achieve. Life moves quickly, and it may seem like each morning alarm is a pistol shot at the starting line, and you have to sprint all day to keep up.

Student athletes face especially demanding schedules when trying to fit in the numerous activities they participate in; attending classes, completing homework, attending games, practices and other team commitments, extra-curricular activities, and maybe even holding down a job.

Colleges expect students to be well balanced, pursuing multiple interests and succeeding in many diverse areas. The concept of managing this schedule, as well as creating personal and social time, can be overwhelming.

Balance
Often, in pursuing success, balance is forgotten. In our vigorous society, being focused, driven and aggressive are seen as admirable characteristics, but sometimes this concept is taken too far. 

While pushing yourself in order to achieve your goals is a good thing, pushing yourself too hard has serious consequences. Being too focused or too driven can be both physically and emotionally detrimental. Burning out is a very real phenomenon, causing people to quit before completing their goals. Without follow through, or finishing what you set out to do, you will not experience success.

Achieving balance is a challenging feat. In the midst of juggling many responsibilities and chasing down dreams, important areas of our lives are naturally overlooked. For example, if you focus entirely on your athletic life, your academics suffer. Likewise, if you devote all your energy to academics and athletics, forgoing much needed sleep, your physical health suffers. 

Don't get discouraged; finding yourself out of balance is part of life and can be corrected.
While perfect balance is not realistic, relative balance is essential. Managing activities properly is achievable; the happiest, healthiest, most successful people are often the most balanced. If you ever find yourself out of whack, and you will, here are some steps to getting on a more balanced plane.

1. Identify the important areas of your life. For most people, this includes your mind, body, spirit, social relationships, emotions and responsibilities.  Identify the goals you have in each of these areas. Jotting down a list or creating a chart to serve as a visual aid can be helpful. Think about which areas you devote most of your time and to which you can direct more energy.
2. Taking time out of your schedule to review the important areas of your life and the goals you have for these areas is very important. Evaluate your goals, noting where you are focusing most of your time and energy. Decide which parts of your life are being neglected and modify your schedule to focus on these areas.
3. Be sure to keep a healthy support system. A support system is simply the people and organizations you turn to in times of need. This can include friends, family, teachers, coaches, guidance counselors, and your church or youth group. 
4. Plan time for laid-back social activities like going to dinner with friends, or seeing a funny movie. If you are up to it, yoga and meditation are excellent practices in balance, concentration and rejuvenation.

Making healthy choices daily improves your ability to balance. Basic things, such as getting enough sleep, eating properly and staying hydrated give you the fuel you need to stay on track.

Remember, your life is not a sprint, it's a marathon. Maintain balance in all the areas of your life to lower your chances of burning out and increase your ability to achieve lifelong success.