How many times in your life has someone told you to “get involved”? New students under pressure to succeed in college should consider what this phrase really means. Being involved is one of the most important facets of your SMU education. These extracurricular activities help you to mature personally, professionally, socially, mentally, and even spiritually. Additionally, involvement provides networking and opportunities for future careers after college.

You may have just joined one or two organizations (or maybe nine) through Night at the Club, the volunteer fair, or by personal invitation from a fellow student. Congrats – now what? Unlike academia, you don’t have a personalized degree plan telling you what to do next. As a student who has been quite involved in the last four years, I’d like to share my secret to getting involved, staying involved, and enjoying your involvement.

Before I came to college, I came up with a simple life motto – decide, delete, devote. Decide what you want to do, delete the other stuff, and devote your time to what matters. Trust me – having a simple mantra or framework helps provide consistency while you try to balance the myriad of college activities. Four years later, I have modified this personal mantra a little bit. So here are D’Liu’s 3 D’s to Success: Discover, Determine, Dedicate.

Discover Your Passions and Purpose

For many students, this step is the easiest one. College is the perfect place to explore and discover your interests. Maybe you are looking for stronger friendships, helping others, growing spiritually, or saving enslaved children in South Asia. Still not sure? Think about what makes you really angry. Maybe you don’t like people who smoke too close to buildings or you wish there was more lighting on campus. What did you dream about doing as a little kid? Revisiting your childhood dreams is often a great place to discover your passions. You will continue to discover new passions as life progresses. Why do you think people have mid-life crises? Many people don’t start in careers that are inline with their passions. SMU offers many resources such as the Hegi Career Center, the Leadership and Community Involvement Office, etc.

Note: I am aware of the difference between passion and purpose. I speak mainly about passion as pure energy. Purpose is “your reason for existing” or “your calling”. In a sense, passion gives your purpose fuel and focus. I admit this is an interesting topic in and of itself. Many articles and books exist on these two topics.

Determine Your Pace

For most people, this step is the hardest. Your pace is more than just the speed at which you move. I’m talking about the pace at which you engage in any daily activity. Just think back to the Olympics. How did Michael Phelps get to where he is today? Swimming in Beijing required him to condition his body to a very fast pace. Think about what pace suits you. Are you accustomed to running from class to class and sometimes having to skip lunch? Or do you need to sit down and enjoy your food in order not to feel stressed? Determining your pace is very important – it prevents too much stress or commitments. Your pace will affect everything you do – how much sleep you get, how often you work out, how often you study, and how often you are involved with your various activities. Ultimately, setting a strong pace for yourself will teach you to plan your time more efficiently.

Ever heard the excuse, “I didn’t have time”? This excuse usually translates into “I didn’t want to,” or “I didn’t know how to,” or “I was doing something else more important to me.” If you start finding yourself late to meetings, missing meetings, or even canceling on your friends, you might think about sitting down and re-evaluating step one. Are you involved in something that is important to you? Maybe you are taking on too many responsibilities that are affecting your pace. Whatever the reason, take time off to be by yourself and think.

Dedicate Yourself

Being involved is not an easy thing. It demands your attention, your time, and your energy. The best thing you can do is to really dedicate yourself to self-evaluation. Makes sense right? You’ve found something that you really enjoy doing – you’re going to pour your heart into it. How do you know when you’re overdoing it? How often are you evaluating your commitments? Healthy student leaders are usually very conscious about whether or not a specific commitment becomes more of an obligation. Are you enjoying what you are doing? If not, maybe it’s time to go back to step one.

This framework is not backed by any specific academic theories or studies. However, I hope it stimulates some conversation. I’m interested to see what you think about my framework. Email me with ways you deal with the “big picture”. I’d love to get your feedback. If you would like to see some articles on time management, work/life balance, etc., please e-mail me.

Daniel Liu is a graduate engineering management student. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].