Because the Jimmy John’s delivery guy can’t write your essays for you (yes, we’ve asked), we present a few of the good habits we could have used early on our freshman year.

Professionalism:

While many of us are still using our email accounts from 7th grade (skiracerchickie1994@aol.com ring any bells?), college is the time to change that. Your DU account should be a fallback, and perhaps one of the simplest ways to change your email is your last name followed by a first name. Unless, that is, you have two first names and find yourself being called by your last name. From personal experience, it’s only amusing the first few times it happens.

Self-Care:

College happens to be much more work than high school. When your school work piles up on your desk and threatens to swallow you whole, remember to take care of yourself first. This means catching up on sleep (7-9 hours a night), getting exercise (30 minutes at least), and doing whatever makes you feel best about yourself. Whether this means curling up with a good book, going out to dinner with a friend or listening to your favorite kinds of music, do that thing. Note: This does NOT mean binge-watching Netflix. Getting actual rest/exercise/relaxation is much better than having your roommate find you passed out in a pile of your own drool asleep over your laptop. On-campus resources for feeling anxious, depressed or undergoing any kind of issue can be found at the Health & Counseling Center.

Eating Breakfast:

While this is probably the simplest thing you could do all day, eating a healthy breakfast can have a huge impact on your health. The Mayo Clinic website outlines just a few potential bonuses for adults who eat breakfast, including weight control and an increased amount of vitamins and minerals. And as everyone knows, two bowls of cereal are acceptable for breakfast. The first you eat for nutrition, and the second you eat just because they’re that frickin’ good. Trust me on this one.

Embrace Your Weirdness:

For Halloween my freshman year, my friend and I decided to get artsy and go way over the top with our costumes. Her idea was based around the concept of a halfway dead girl, with an eerily painted skull face on one side and typical cute girl makeup on the other. I decided to go for a goth/skeleton look, and both of us ended up being the only two at the party with our full face makeup.

While we may have gotten some disapproving looks, we were too busy having lots of fun and laughing at ourselves to even notice other people’s reactions.

Be original. Even though it might not be what your parents, grandparents, boyfriend, girlfriend, etc. want for you, you’re the only person who lives your life. When you’re yourself, you attract the kind of people you want to be around. Al Capone once said, “I’d rather have four quarters than a hundred pennies,” and the saying rings true for your friends. Surround yourself with the kind of people who make you feel good about who you really are.

So there you have it, intrepid freshmen. May your coffee never be cold and may your bed frame never break on you like ours did.