With college essays, application resumes, and letters of recommendations on every senior’s mind, I have noticed a common trend in lunchtime conversations: “Guess how little sleep I got?” This phrase is usually followed by an explanation of why a student was up until 3 in the morning, which consists of a list of one hundred and one activities.

In the past, the thought of overextension in my daily life seemed commonplace. From sports to clubs to committees to volunteer work to homework and tests, my life became a never ending list of things that had to be done. The worst part of this all was that I was not tackling this impossible feat of “doing everything” because I wanted to — but rather because I believed other people (specifically, colleges) wanted me to. In recent months, I have become all too familiar with a principle that I believe is very prevalent in the lives of high schoolers: being overextended and undercommitted.

In theory, this principle is exactly what it sounds like; it describes somebody who is involved in so many different activities (social, academic, athletic or extracurricular) that their full allegiance and effort is never given to any of the activities. An individual participates in a mile long list of clubs, sports and committees, yet none of them are ever done extremely well, or often ever done adequately.

Being overextended does not necessarily coincide with being well-rounded; in fact, I find that many of those who have achieved the title of “well rounded” tend to fit my definition of being overextended and undercommitted. Some people manage to make being an all-state athlete and honor-roll scholar work with their schedule and still find time to relax, and more power to them. However, under the circumstances, if you do not fit that definition of being all-around balanced and still-sane, there’s good news: I’ve been there, and there’s still hope for you too.

There’s a concise list of advice I believe students that are overextended and undercommitted need to hear.

Firstly, college should not always be the end goal in participating in an activity. An after school club will not make or break your college acceptance, and if it does not seem interesting to you beyond the notion that college admissions officers will find it interesting, do not try to put effort into it. Ultimately, the things that you want to do should take precedence over something you feel as though you’re being forced to do. Similarly, your participation in an activity you only do to impress a college could take away somebody else’s opportunity to do what they love.

Secondly, passions are important. Trying new things is also important, but finding and pursuing your passion is something people strive to do their whole lives — if you know what you were meant to do in high school, spend your time and effort on something you know and love, rather than on something you may or may not enjoy in a month’s time.

Thirdly, be reasonable. No one expects you to be up until 3 in the morning doing homework, and it is not fair of you to expect that of yourself. There are nights when you have more math homework than the next, but consistently losing sleep and energy because of your overloaded schedule is simply not a fulfilling way to live.

Lastly, enjoy your time in high school. Four years passes much more quickly than you might think, and it’s heartbreaking when you look back and realize you began senior year with only hazy memories of jumbled paperwork and committee emails upon sports practice upon club meetings. Enjoy time with your family and friends, relax on the weekends, and keep in mind that you want to do your best at the important things that you love — not what you will think colleges will love.