Make Time for Friends

Barry the Study Dog and his old buddy Gambit making time to hang out in the sun on a short winter day.

I f, like Barry the Study Dog, you have the tendency to get so caught up in your own adventures that you accidentally neglect hanging out with your friends, this is a great time of year to make more of an effort.

With the holidays over but winter still slogging on, everybody is looking forward to the day when their friends are available again and it’s nice enough to go do stuff. Be the light at the end of their dark, wintry tunnel by proactively making plans with friends you haven’t seen in a while.

Invite them to share a short study break or afternoon snack before you start your homework, or schedule something bigger for a weekend afternoon after you’ve done your regular weekend review of all your classes and updated your study guides.

Having fun after you work hard will make the fun stuff even more enjoyable.

If you do it the other way around, you’ll feel guilty about neglecting your work while you’re hanging out with your friends. Then you’ll become frustrated that your work is taking you longer than you wanted it to because you’re doing it at a time of day when you have less brainpower. Before you know it, you’ll be in danger of mistaking your poor planning for an indication that you don’t have time to hang out with your friends, putting you back in the friendless rut you’ve been in the last two months.

Your friends need you, but they need you at your best: on top of your schoolwork and ready to give them your undivided attention.

Now, get to work making plans to hang out with your friends after you get to work!

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