The Guidance Guy

Dear Guidance Guy,

I'm a student athlete, and track is my biggest thing. I mean if
you've got an Olympic dream in track it's not just something
tiny. My problem is three of my classes next semester are
honors classes (we have four 90 minute classes a day). I have
a lot of friends that are in honors classes and they always talk
about how they work on their homework till midnight. Next
semester I also have track. How should I deal with the work
as well as practices and meets?

Thanks,
RV

*****

Dear RV,

Looks like you'll have a busy semester. Fortunately, most people
who have the kind of schedule you will have do just fine. There
are a few things you can do to make things easier.

First, talk to the teachers you will have, if you know who they
are. If not, talk to anyone who teaches that class. See if there
is a syllabus or course outline you can look at now. Can the
teacher give you any suggestions to get ready for the upcoming
course? Anything you can do to get prepared beforehand (as long
as you have time now) will be an advantage.

Second, and most important, get organized and systematized
for the next semester. It's not enough to just say you will make
time to do everything. What time will you use? How will you
take care of the work load you have? Build a system for your
life that let's you do everything you need to do.

There is a chapter called "Organize and Systematize" in my
book, SO, YOU WANNA GO TO COLLEGE... that you might
find very helpful. The most successful people (and the most
successful companies) use a system to keep themselves
focused. It is definitely possible to do everything you want
to do. And it certainly looks like you've got the motivation!

Have a great season,
The Guidance Guy