Back to School: Incoming Freshman Survival Guide

Hello high schoolers, and anyone else who might be interested in this. I have decided to write a post about surviving your first year of high school. I thought I would give you some pointers, tips, and basically things I wish I had known when I was a freshman in high school. Let's get started!

Now if only everyone was that excited to go to school...

1. Always walk on the right side of the hallway, and DON'T stop to talk to your friends! When you are your friends are talking at lunch or outside of school, then you can talk, and plan to meet up somewhere in your intersecting routes and chat. Don't stop at their locker and clog up the hallways! Hallways are small as it is-- no need to make it smaller. If you are walking on the right side of the hallway, that means the people in the other direction are walking on their right side, and there's no need for shoving and discomfort. And please, don't be that one jerk who thinks it is funny to walk right in the middle of traffic going the opposite direction.

2. Get involved. I know, I know. You have heard this one time and time again. I thought that people were just trying to get me to be a part of school. But, I actually have to let you know that getting involved it the #1 way to meet people. Joining a team, or club, or even showing up to football games forces you to interact with new people, and make friends. I really wish someone would have told me that I would regret not getting more involved than I had.

3. STOP obsessing over boys. One of the very first things that freshman do is obsess about boys. To be honest, they act like little pigeons. Now, I'm not saying I didn't do this, because I did. I'm just letting you know that there is so much more to high school than just the boys. "High school isn't about finding your groom, it's about finding your bridesmaids."

4. Stop procrastinating, and start doing your work in advance. This is something that I actually followed a lot during freshman year, and I am so thankful that I did. I remember I had this one class that had an essay and a current event due each week, and sometimes even two essays. So, I remembered that if I got it all done in the beginning of the week, I could actually do something with my friends over the weekend. And it may sound nerdy, but I did some projects and assignments weeks in advance, because they always were due within the same week. This is one of the biggest tips I could give you!

5. Don't do anything  outlandish until you are sure you're ready. I think that is self-explanatory.

6. Don't hold grudges. I know that I held a grudge from this one girl who I was best friends with in middle school, and then we weren't friends anymore, and I brought that grudge to high school with me as a freshman. I wish I hadn't, I should have let go, even though it hurt very much at the time. The truth is, people change, and you need to embrace changes with open arms. In fact, if you can't embrace changes, then maybe you yourself need to change a little.

I feel like I am saying "don't" too much, and I need to tell you what TO do...

7. DO take a step back from the situation, and look at it from a different perspective. It may not be as bad as it seems. Oh boy, I wish I had known this one! I was always a bit of a drama queen, and maybe if I had gained a different perspective, I wouldn't have had half as many problems. It may seem like the end of the world now, but in a year, do you think you will actually remember it? If you will remember it, do you think it will seem as big of a deal as it is now? You may be thinking the answer is yes, but 90% of the time, it will be no. So, don't sweat the small things, and just focus on having fun.

I hope these tips helped you and relieves some stress from back to school time. Please leave any requests in the comments, along with your thoughts about this post.

Oh! I forgot my last tip!...