Dear students. Finals week may seem like doomsday. But it’s really not.

Probably way more important than the curriculum you are being tested on is the lessons you learn about time management, stress management, and maybe even learning how to recover from failure. Education is “training” for life. But in the end – passing a calculus final or completing that final research paper, no matter how stressful it may be – means nothing compared to the man going through chemo, or the woman whose husband is leaving her and the kids, or  the mother who lost a child to addiction.

 
You think FINALS week is stressful? Sure. It is. But so is life out here in the real world. Think of this as a workout that prepares you for it. There is real life out there. And while it’s full of potholes and stress and struggle – YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH. Finals week is about making sure that you know it.
 
The funny thing about stress is that it reveals your character. If you are a sponge – stress is the pressure applied that makes what is on the inside come out. When stressful times come your way – if you don’t like what comes out – then you need to be making sure that you have better stuff on the inside! The good thing – stress pushes out the bad stuff…. just make sure you’ve done your part to fill yourself back up with the good stuff!
 
Work hard. Do your best. You’ll survive this.