A Balancing Act Worth Juggling

My name is Nick Anderson and I’m a senior advertising major here at Temple University. Interning at 160over90 this past summer and fall semester has proven to be one of the best learning experiences since I’ve started school. While it has been a great experience, balancing an internship and full-time class credits is no easy task. So, I’m writing a survivor’s guide for the balancing act.

Step 1: Be prepared to work hard.
It goes without saying that having an internship during a full-time school semester is no easy task. It requires mental preparation for the long hours ahead of you and a commitment to take on the challenge. Without fully understanding the commitment, you could easily find yourself burned out before the going even gets tough.

Step 2: It’s all about preparation.
You’re going to find yourself juggling deadlines from a plethora of sources—it can become difficult to remember to accomplish every assignment. The best solution to this is to physically write out every assignment and deadline you have for each week and post it to a spot that you’re required to look at regularly (I tape it to the back of my bedroom door, so I see it every morning).

Even more, setting soft deadlines is a great way of tackling work when the pile-up seems too intimidating. We’ve all experienced the anxiety of pushing things off until the last minute, and it can lead to not being able to accomplish every task in time. Setting small goals each day for your longer-term assignments is a good way of combating this.

Step 3: Trust yourself!
Here’s the thing, you wouldn’t be where you are if you weren’t capable of handling it. When work becomes overwhelming, a burnout can leave anyone feeling down and incapable—but this is not the time to give up hope!