Extra-Curricular Activities and My Sanity

I don’t know about you, but I can’t stand it if I only study all day, every day. Sure, sure learning is fun, and essential, and all that jazz…but man, oh man. If I did nothing but study I would probably go nuts.

I need to have something else to focus on, whether it is a hobby, a club, or a job. As exciting as it is to have a job, it’s not the easiest thing to come by. I myself don’t always have a job during the school year, and you can only do so much with a hobby.

Something that is consistent in my life is my overwhelming desire for extra-curricular activities. I personally love to hold Executive roles, so this often takes the role of an unpaid job, but there are many roles in clubs and organizations that do not take up a lot of your time, and allow you to network.

This also ties in to my last post about volunteering; participating in extra-curriculars means that you are essentially doing unpaid work, which is why I encourage you to seek out clubs that align with your interests and objectives. For example, if I detested riding bikes, I would not join the Bike Riding Club. I have joined various initiatives centered on education and giving young people a voice because that is what is important to me.  

The awesome thing about taking on extra-curriculars in university is the basket of benefits you get:

1. You get an opportunity to network with like-minded peers.

2. If you work hard and move up the ranks, you will gain experience in positions very similar to the ones you want to hold in a future job.

3. As you move up the ranks and become an Executive, you learn important things about marketing yourself and dealing with clients. You also learn about the importance of professionalism in everything you do.

4. You get interview practice! Most clubs and organizations have an interview process you must pass in order to get a position within the organization.

As with all things, extra-cirriculars require hard work and dedication. You can read up more on the professionalism I mentioned in point #3 above, here: http://joomla.utsc.utoronto.ca/aaccweb/images/stories/EmploymentTipsheet/ProfessionalismontheJob.pdf. 


I’ll be expanding on professionalism in my next post, as I move on to interviews!

Speak again soon,

Farihah