STUDENTS SHOULD BE PROACTIVE, NOT REACTIVE

You might be wondering what being proactive and reactive means and why students should be proactive. Well, here is a simple explanation of both. Being proactive means you take charge, plan ahead of time and make things happen rather than sitting around and waiting to react to situations, you take the lead. On the other hand, being reactive is the polar opposite. You wait, you’re always trying to catch up and you never think or act ahead of time. In other words, someone reactive is passive and as they say, “go with the flow”.

So, now that we’ve got the meaning, back to the question. Why should students be proactive rather than reactive? This term, we’ve had many events and activities going on like sports day, elections for senate posts and palliative care amongst others. One of the characteristics of a proactive person is that they take control of their life and this involves taking up opportunities and so through all these different activities, someone proactive would have taken up these opportunities which would give them experience in life and eventually help with having a weighty C.V.

Secondly, being proactive helps a student deal with change and ably manage difficult situations that may come while someone reactive will panic when change comes and this panic leads to irrational decisions which they can end up regretting in the long term as someone reactive only responds to short-term inconveniences and never looks at the bigger picture. Additionally, being proactive helps reduce stress because since you plan ahead of time and rule out all the possibilities of anything happening, you’ll be ready to take on anything or even prevent something bad from getting worse as the saying goes ‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’.

Personally, being proactive has helped me immensely in handling impromptu incidents. As chief judge, I’m constantly handling various disputes in the dormitory or being called to handle an instance on the spot. So I plan out my days at the beginning and generally make sure I’ve got everything I need and done everything I need to have done the day before. With all this, I think it is important for every student to be proactive as it helps them to take charge of their life and prevents panic.

Esther Kirabo

Year 12 Royals