People who pretend they have their lives together at University are lying

Dressing nicely for a seminar doesn’t mean you’ve got it all sorted


Everyone knows this person from afar. In a long term relationship with someone, plays for two different legitimate sports teams, always arrives to seminars with colour-coded notes and has actually brushed their hair, despite the lecture being at the ungodly hour of 9am.

They pipe up as your seminar leader looks pleadingly around the room – “When I was doing one of the additional reading pieces…” Everyone groans quietly to themselves, fully aware they didn’t do any reading, additional or not. Yet inside you wonder how these people manage to hold it all together when your life is slowly crumbling into a deep dark hole that you doubt you’ll ever be able to crawl out of.

I mean I don’t even try to participate so she’s beating me

However, having their life together is nothing more than a facade. A front shown to the world to hide from the fact that they have no more clue what’s going on than you – they just don’t want to admit it.

University is the only time in your life when it’s really truly acceptable to be in this state of complete disarray so I say embrace it while you can. Before University your Mum would chivy you out of bed if you dared try and sleep in until ten, and after University the probability is you would get fired if you missed as much stuff as you do now. The second you’ve been handed that diploma on your graduation day you are finally completely free, but completely unguided as you venture aimlessly into the world.

But what does having it together really mean anyway?

Sure, they might have a job lined up after university, a good one that you also applied for but didn’t even get to the interview stage of, but you’ve been featured on Clubbers of the Week more weeks than you haven’t. If having it together means you’re not having fun then I want no part in it whatsoever.

Admittedly being named ‘Sweatiest Clubber’ probably isn’t your proudest moment

Maybe these creatures of perfection actually look at you, as you waltz in 20 minutes late for no apparent reason, and wish they had your confidence to not be wearing any makeup whilst looking that ugly and the complete lack of desire to contribute anything to this seminar at all. Unlikely, but still possible.

The often overlooked advantage is you now have another word to describe yourself on your Tinder profile – spontaneous. After all, being this disorganised means you often have to make fairly important decisions (such as final year Module Choices, five minutes before the deadline) at the drop of a hat. Most people admittedly would assume this word means you like making fun plans whenever you like, rather than having regular panic attacks over things you have avoided until the last second, but it’s not technically a lie.

So next time you have a meltdown upon realising you have no boyfriend, no job, no career prospects and the whole of your life is one big bowl of uncertainty, remember that everyone else feels the same way too.