Don’t procrastinate.
Due dates for papers and projects that seem far in the future will be here before you know it! Time pressure is a major cause of stress; lessen it by starting early and completing major projects in a step-wise, organized fashion.
Don’t let small problems grow into big ones before doing anything about them.
If you’re feeling “lost” in a class, see your professor before you’ve accumulated a series of failed quizzes. If you thought you wanted to be an engineer, but realize you’re better suited to communications, see your advisor and make a change. Problems ignored don’t go away; they grow, and produce stress.
Don’t demand perfection of yourself.
Students who’ve been high achievers in high school sometimes really become stressed over a lower-than-expected grade on a quiz or exam. Our Creator knows we’re not perfect; what He expects is our honest best effort. Even the best students rarely “ace” every exam; keep it in perspective, and use your energy in understanding those concepts on which you were foggy.
Don’t let the “busyness” of college life crowd personal devotions and prayer out of your daily routine.
We need time to re-charge our spiritual batteries; to be quiet and open to what God wants to tell us from His word; and to give Him our thanks and worship, as well as turn over our burdens to Him. Satan would be really pleased to help this get squeezed out of our schedules, even by really good things. Be very jealous of your time with God; you’ll be glad you are.
Learn to laugh.
Look for the humor in life; even a lot of the stressful situations we get into have a funny side. Look for it, and let yourself laugh. Be ready to laugh at yourself and with others. Laughter relaxes tense muscles, causes deep breathing and lowers the stress response. Obviously, not all of life’s difficult situations have a “funny” side; if you must deal with one of those for several days, look for a humorous book or article.