Life Lessons

Dependent procrastinators become independent time managers

by Alex Hawkins

Hey, guys! It’s your friendly neighborhood Alex back one again for another post! Today is going to be another lesson that we have learned as college students. Do you remember my good friend Annie from “Coffee that comes from the Land Down Under“? She and I have decided to team up once again to explain how college has helped us become better time managers, but also more independent. So, let’s begin!

“In high school, I had my parents reminding or telling me to do things like get a job, do homework, study, and so on,” says Annie. ” Now that I have a lot more free time because I’m not taking eight classes every day, I learned how to balance a job, a social life, and school all together. Because I have a large amount of free time, I would go out and do other things, and I struggled with choosing a time to do homework. I have learned how to manage time better because you can’t choose to one over the other. You have to learn how to do it all together.”


When I was in high school, I procrastinated so bad that sometimes I would start papers that were due at midnight the morning it was due. I was terrible at time management. As I completed my first semester and am now half way through my second semester in college, I learned that I can’t do the same things I did in high school.


Tests and papers in college have more weight on a final average because some of the professors don’t give homework for you to bring your grade up. You really have to know how to make time in your schedule for studying, researching and practicing what you learned rather than always hanging out with friends, playing billiards or watching Netflix.


I also learned from a very young age that I can’t always depend on others to get me through school. I have to do it on my own. I missed birthday parties, hanging out with my friends and even family vacations because I had to do school work. Like Annie said above, my mother also always pushed me to study hard and make good grades in high school. Now that I’ve moved away from home, it’s all up to me to push myself to do the best work I can possibly do. Not only has it shaped me into the person I am today, it also made me realize that I don’t need to rely on anyone but myself because only I can show professors and potential graduate schools what I am capable of.


Not only did Annie and I learn how to manage time better and become more independent, Annie also learned that she is not as caffeinated on most days like I am, and I learned how to cook for friends (Annie agrees that the tacos that I made were really good). So remember, friends, if you aren’t good at time management now, learn how to get better at it. It will make you more independent.


Don’t forget, if you have any life lessons that you want to share, feel free to leave a comment in the comment section below. Until next time…Keep it kinda classy!

“Failure is always an option.”

by Alex Hawkins

Guess who! It’s your friendly neighborhood Alex back again! Thank you to all of those who took the poll in the last post. It was very helpful in knowing what my peoples want. So, I’m back again with another life lesson that I have learned in my college experience. You may be asking, “Alex, what do you mean when you say ‘failure is always an option’?” Well, let me enlighten you.

When I was in high school, I was a straight-A student. I never got anything below a 90 average if I could help it. As I transitioned into my life here at Lipscomb, I had a rough time with one of my classes (biology, to be specific). I knew deep down after my first test that I would not be making an A in that class…ever.

Starting out with a class average of 64 (lab grade included) was a tough pill to swallow for me. I thought my whole world was crashing down before me in a fiery mass. It made me consider if college was even the right option for me.

In that time, I wanted to drop out of college and give up on my dream of going to medical school. All I wanted to do was go back to Texas, drown myself in a gallon tub of Blue Bell strawberry ice cream and watch NCIS all day. But after my two-week pity party, I remembered a quote that I kept off of the show, Mythbusters. “Failure is always an option.”

The original Mythbusters

Before this moment, I never really understood the meaning behind why failure could be considered an option. I knew what it was like to fail a test, and it never really affected me because I could always ask for extra credit or something to help bring my grade up.

But college is so different than high school.

Extra credit is nonexistent, and failing one test could be the difference whether or not you pass the class (especially when you only have four test grades and no homework). But this quote kept resonating in my head. I remembered that the Mythbusters were well-renowned scientists, and they constantly had experiments that they busted or, in other words, failed.

After talking with various important people in my life, I came to terms with the fact that it’s OK to fail. We, as humans, were not created to always succeed in the things we want to accomplish. We need things like a failure in our lives so that we can take a step back from the small picture and look at the whole picture.

Because of my failing the first test and having a GPA-wrecking average, I learned that it’s okay not to be good at everything. Heck, it’s OK to be terrible! As long as you keep trying your hardest, giving it your best effort, and never giving up. You will succeed eventually. Look at me, I passed my biology class after failing for a solid half a semester.

If you have any life lessons that you want to share, feel free to leave a comment in the comment section below. Remember, friends, you’ve got this! Until next time…Keep it kinda classy!

Why traveling is a must.

by Alex Hawkins

When coming up with ideas for a new topic, I realized that I haven’t done a life experience, and this blog is about life experiences and coffee. I thought to myself, “Let’s do a life experience this week.” As a world traveler, I have experienced beautiful cultures and people wherever I have gone. There are so many things to do, sights to see and people to meet anywhere one goes, but one of my favorite places that I have been to was Costa Rica.

Fortunately, it was a twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I got to experience. Not only did I drink some of the greatest coffee in the world, but I also learned that experiencing other cultures opens up your heart and mind to things that some people don’t ever get to experience.

Both times I went to Costa Rica, I wasn’t aware of how lucky I was to be able to experience a sliver of Central American culture that only a few people get to see. I got to experience the tourist aspect along with experiencing the local aspect of the country.

On the weekends, we would go to big tourist places such as Arenal Volcano, Manuel Antonio National Parkand Isla Tortuga. While during the week, we would spend four hours in school and the rest of the of the time looking for local hideouts such as Mercado Central.

Sloth at Manuel Antonio National Park
El Mercado Central, San Jose, Costa Rica

The lesson I learned from going to Costa Rica was to live, love and incorporate.

Live the local lifestyle. Go out and have fun with the locals because sometimes the best dance instructors are the random people dancing to the music in the streets.

Love the people and the food. The locals know some of the best places to eat, even if they are in some of the sketchiest places you will ever go to.

Learn how to incorporate what you did or saw into your everyday life. Going to Costa Rica showed me that patience really is a virtue. The people there have a saying that they use for almost anything, “Pura Vida” or “pure life.” I saw how relaxed and content the locals were, and I wanted to incorporate that into my own life.

“Order, pay, relax here”

If you have the opportunity to travel, take it because there are so many lessons that can be learned from the locals there. So, if you have experienced another country, I’d love to hear about where you went in the comments below. Until next time…Keep it kinda classy!