The Crimson White Print Edition - August 24, 2023

2B
Alex Jobin
Staff Columnist
Back in the 1700s, there
was a strange man who
used to plan his day out to
the minute. His name was
Benjamin Franklin.
Franklin would follow his
schedule to a tee, blocking
out time for work, meals,
sleep and even leisure. His
emphasis on keeping a
stringent routine has even
been immortalized in one
of his most famous quotes:
“Early to bed and early to
rise, makes a man healthy,
wealthy, and wise.”
Settling into a routine
may be the best way to
manage the transition back
to academic life without
setting yourself up for a
fall of late nights, lastminute
assignments, and
all-around anxiety. All the
better if you can begin
to ease into that routine.
before returning to the
Capstone.
Now, Franklin’s daily
schedule may have
blurred the line between
organization and psychosis,
but there is actual science
which suggests that keeping
some form of routine can
reward you with significant
benefits in your everyday life.
As we transition back into
the school year, we must
keep routine in mind if we
want to keep up our grades.
Not to mention everything
else the average UA student
has going on.
opinion
Keeping a schedule makes college life easier
Even with jobs,
internships and various
other commitments taking
place, there may be no easier
time for us students to fall
out of behavioral patterns
than over the course of
summer break. Summer
can mean everything from
irregular sleep schedules
to sporadic travel to
meandering hours of honestto-goodness
boredom — and
it’s the best.
However, it lies in stark
relief against the regimen and
responsibility of fall semester.
Settling into a routine
may be the best way to
manage the transition back
to academic life without
setting yourself up for a
fall of late nights,
last-minute
assignments, and
all-around anxiety.
All the better if you
can begin to ease into
that routine before
returning to
the Capstone.
So here’s the science.
When you create and
follow a daily regimen, you
in turn create a domino
effect of health benefits for
yourself. It becomes much
easier to eat better and stay
fit when you have set aside
dedicated times for grocery
shopping and exercise.
It can be easy to find
yourself lost in a sea of other
responsibilities that distract
from these basic healthy
behaviors over the course
of a semester, but keeping a
routine can provide you with
guide rails to ensure you
continue to prioritize your
physical health.
Routine becomes even
more powerful when
considering one’s mental
well-being. According to
Northwestern Medicine,
having a consistent
schedule has been shown
to reduce stress and anxiety
while simultaneously
providing you with more
opportunities for relaxation.
Maintaining a consistent
routine allows you
to tackle your
responsibilities
head-on and can
provide more enjoyable
downtime that won’t
make you feel like you are
procrastinating.
Perhaps the most integral
part of routine — and one
which evades many college
students, including myself
— is forming a regular sleep
schedule. Having consistent
bedtime habits has been
found to improve “mental
sharpness, emotional well-
CW / Shelby West
being and energy” — all of
which are indispensable
when facing the rigors of
academia. Establishing a
routine for your waking
hours will translate into more
regular sleeping patterns,
creating a positive feedback
loop of health benefits.
No matter what our
ultimate ambitions are, we
all share a common thread
as students at The
University of Alabama: we
are all working to garner the
skills and tools necessary for
succeeding and achieving our
future goals. The importance
of having a strong, healthy
foundation cannot be
overstated when it comes to
this endeavor, and routine
is the perfect place to start
building that foundation.
There are few examples
of someone who was able
to realize their ambition as
impressively as Benjamin
Franklin. Of course, like
any of America’s Founding
Fathers, he was not a perfect
man. However, flaws aside,
Franklin was successful in
achieving nearly everything
he set his mind to — and he
set his mind to a lot.
He crafted a lofty legacy
for himself in journalism,
politics, philosophy and
science, even establishing
long-lasting institutions
like fire departments
and libraries. Franklin’s
life was one marked by
accomplishment. It does
not appear coincidental
that Franklin’s life was also
marked by strict routine.
But to be truthful, I care
far more about the future
Benjamin Franklins than
Franklin himself. Our
generation is on the cusp of
inheriting the reins of the
great American experiment,
and we should strive to be
great ourselves. We should all
wish to succeed and to fulfill
our academic, personal and
professional potential. We
can start with routine.
Gradually transition into
a more consistent sleep
schedule. Set goals for
yourself that will prioritize
both your mental and
physical health. Add these
practices to your calendar so
that you have a template you
can follow on a daily basis.
Creating and adhering to
a routine can feel like a hefty
task, but the science does
not lie. If you are able to find
a routine that works for you,
then you will be empowered
to live a happier, healthier
and more successful life. I
will certainly be trying to find
a routine this semester, and
I encourage you to do the
same.
Your grades, and your
future, will thank you later.
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