Teens Meet Outreach

What would you do if you went to college?

In a previous post, I pointed out that college is a preparatory ground for living; not just living but for successful living. I know you might question the essence of preparation as touching living a successful life. Do you need to prepare to wake up in the morning and go about your daily business? Or what exactly do I mean by that?

To answer your question, I may want to ask you too “why do you bath daily?” Bathing isn’t necessary but yet bathing is a must every morning for most of us before we leave our homes. It is not that we cannot do without bathing daily but we just have to. The day you don’t take your bath, you’ll feel almost uncomfortable throughout the day. We like to feel and look good so we bath and take care of our face and body.

I know our assurance or confidence of a great day is not in how we look but it contributes to it. So also is schooling.

College may not be necessary but it contributes a significant part to a successful life. The twist is that this can only be said if you make good use of college years.

How then do we effectively prepare for a successful life and one full of impact by attending college?

1. Decide to go to college to learn and develop in all aspects of life.

You may have to battle your interest and parents’ in choosing a particular course of study (Read: Should I study what my parents want or what I want?). But no matter what course you eventually get to study, you have to make Personal Development your top priority. And if you are in college already and you still want to make the best of it, it also necessary you make this decision at whatever point you are.

The decision is what fuels your drive to be more than just a student but a person prepared for life after schooling.

2. Identify basic areas and aspects of life where you would start the work of development.

This may have to do with your purpose for living because everyone has their own destiny and we may have to take different routes to arrive at that destination. The truth is that only a few of us discover our purpose before we resume college. Some of us will discover it during college while others will have to discover theirs after college.

Nevertheless, there are four basic aspects of life you will have to work no matter what your purpose is. I would encourage you to make sure you develop these areas very well because they are essential to success in life. You may want to add other aspects to it as you proceed; it all depends on you and what you want from life.

I. Develop Spiritually

We are spiritual beings. The body is a physical manifestation of whatever is going on in our Spirits. Recognizing this makes us put Spiritual Development at the core of our developmental process. A closer relationship with God should be your ultimate goal. For most of us, college is where we would have to opportunity to develop a closer personal relationship with God because at home we just perform religiously activities mindlessly.

It is in college we really get to understand and see God for ourselves personally.

So, go to college with this in mind. Sincerely make it a primary duty to seek and thirst for God. And if you have already started developing a relationship with God before college, use your college years to solidify the relationship. Even the Bible says “Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble comes and the years approach when you will say “I find no pleasure in them (Ecc 12:1}”.

Spiritual development is a lifelong quest yet we are told to still make effective use of our youthful days.

II. Develop Academically and Mentally

This is what bought you to college in the first place, so you own a responsibility to be the best in it no matter what. Remember that a man diligent in the works of his hand will stand before kings and not mere men. You may not like the course you are studying but remember you chose to do it and hence, obligated to do everything in every way possible to be the best in it. You never can tell what opportunities lay ahead of you.

Remember, Good grades don’t guarantee success but it opens life changing opportunities for those who seek it.

Academic Development is just an offset of Your Mental Development, so it is important you develop mentally.

Engage your mental faculty. Think. Brainstorm about ideas. Don’t limit your reading to academic books alone. Read self-development books. Read leadership books. Study and research the people you want to be like. Find out what makes them successful. Develop your own life philosophies.

Spiritual and Mental Development are keys to a successful life in the real world but you have to take the time to develop in these areas

Just like exercise helps to build body muscles, so also reading help develop the mental muscles. It helps build mental stamina.

You never tell what your mind is capable of if you don’t stretch and use it.

One advantage of Mental Development is that you gain experience without actually experiencing it. This gives you an edge to achieve what you want to faster and better because you know how better to get what you want.

We need to know that…

In our pursuit of preparing for a successful life after college, we cannot leave God out yet we cannot neglect the reason why we came to college at first. It takes wisdom to able manage ourselves. We have to rely on God to help us do the right things at the right time and take the right decision at every crossroads.  

Spiritual and Mental Development are keys to a successful life in the real-world but you have to take the time to develop in these areas. Your time in college presents to you a golden opportunity to do that, don’t waste it! Invest and use this time wisely. You will thank yourself later.

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