School often does not always provide the particular intellectual stimulation or physical challenge that many students are looking for – that is where extracurricular activities come in. With so many programs and clubs dedicated to a single topic even, it can be overwhelming in deciding which activity you should pick. As a result, it is important that you ask yourself several key questions to truly reveal if YOU want to actually join. This article goes over some questions that we think are necessary in helping you decide what you want your journey to look like.
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Apply NowAm I Interested in This Activity?
This is obviously a very rudimentary question. After all, you would generally pick to do an activity if you like it. However, really think about this question when you ask it to yourself.
This might not help you decide immediately to start that extracurricular, but it can at least help you narrow down your choices. If you can quantify your interests, you then have a sense of what you want to prioritize. The whole point is that your free time is spent doing something you would not give up for anything else. I know for me, that activity is my school's math team. It really is an awesome feeling knowing that every week, you can go to a place to learn about incredible theorems and concepts. And what's more, you get to enjoy that experience with others who share the same passion and joy as you.
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If I Had a Day All to Myself, Would This Be Something I Would Do?
Considering the last question, this may be a bit more involved. But humor yourself with this one. You have 24 hours in a day, and this day is one where the stress of completing assignments or studying has vanished.
Other than the quintessential answers like getting more sleep or eating good food, what are some things you would allocate some of the precious 24 hours you have into? Say you really wanted to get into some sort of sport. Would you imagine yourself playing basketball? Football? Soccer? If you instead wanted to get into some academic activity, could you see yourself doing math in your free time? Biology? Chemistry? Physics? This can illuminate what you desire and more importantly, the level of it.
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Why are you interested?
Do you have a personal connection to this extracurricular activity? Are you only interested because a sibling did it? Are you only looking for something to impress colleges?
The reason this question is vital is that it separates your “interests” from your interests. What I mean is that we can often convince ourselves we are enjoying something if we tell ourselves we do over and over. It is an illusion almost that is not sustainable in the long term. If your motivation for pursuing something is not sincere, it is very likely that this extracurricular becomes almost like a burden. It will feel like work. And a great friend of mine, who has graduated told me that if you truly enjoy something, “It shouldn't feel like work. Even if you are tired, you somehow get the energy to continue.”
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Do I Have the Time to Fully Commit?
Especially when school starts, your time will be extremely limited. You need to balance your school work, extracurriculars, and rest. If you already have so much on your plate, you might be doing yourself a disservice if you add another activity to your schedule.
Sure it can be enjoyable, but if it gets to the point where you are missing necessary sleep because of it, you might need to consider your health over the fun. In other words, everything you do can build up stress and drain your energy. While you might feel fine for a couple of weeks or even a few months, it is not sustainable in the long term. That is why you really have to think about how long you can devote to this extracurricular.
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Conclusion
Ultimately, deciding what extracurricular to do is an individual endeavor. You have to know yourself and even more importantly, understand yourself. You might not pick the activity that was meant for you, but that is okay.
Try as many things as you want; only then can you be confident in what you love. These questions were simply made to guide you in deciding what you are passionate about, and what you “just do”. But now it's your time to get out there – and explore!
