A student’s life is no less than a rollercoaster. In addition to learning new skills and exploring various opportunities, a student has a lot to deal with in terms of assignments, practicals, exams, internships, workshops, lectures, and much more, essential to ensure optimum academic development. Amidst the busy schedule, it is very important to take a break to refresh oneself. This is where extracurricular activities play a vital role. These activities, during college life, keep you positive, fresh, energetic and go a long way in making you more productive. Not only do they lighten your mood, but they also help in shaping your overall personality and interpersonal skills.

To know yourself, it is important to interact with others, to understand your thinking and reaction to various situations. Being involved in sports teaches you various interpersonal skills such as patience, communication, leadership, punctuality, accountability, teamwork, trust, and others which will help you not only to win a particular sports competition but also grow and achieve success in life. Irrespective of it being a team sport or an individual sport, you interact with others, may it be your competitors, fellow mates or your coach, or anyone else for that matter.

Besides effective communication, these interactions help you become a multi-tasker as you start realising the importance of striking a balance between work and personal life. You will also learn the skill of time management as you gradually learn to manage time between your lectures, assignments, academics, and sports. While playing a sport you come across various situations that require quick decision-making which will be crucial for you and your team. Encountering such situations not only makes you proactive but also makes you a good decision-maker, a great team player, and even a good leader.

Sports not only contribute to shaping your personality but also impact your academic performance significantly. There have been many studies proving that students involved in sports during their college life perform better in academics. Reasons for this can be many, as sport teaches you the skills of time management and also act as a stress buster when you are loaded with too many assignments and deadlines. Students need to take a break from their daily routine to ensure that they have stable mental health. And what better way than involving yourself in sports, to take that much-needed break? Such productive breaks enhance your capacity to think, learn, focus, and contribute to academics.

Being fit mentally and physically is essential. By having sports as your hobby, you can boost your mental health and also learn to maintain a balance between your curricular and co-curricular activities. It enables you to be emotionally strong as sports lets you experience various emotions like success, failure, happiness, disappointment, etc. When you are involved in sports, you exercise daily to maintain your stamina and physical fitness. Daily exercise helps in reducing stress and makes you feel positive about yourself.

Investing time in something you love which can later become your passion and possibly a career, is a dream for many. During your college years, participating in sports lets you explore your interests and skills. There is a possibility that a particular sport interests you so much that you decide to make a career out of it. In today’s times, the sports industry is growing rapidly and is expected to boom significantly in the coming years. Sports as a career is challenging. But if you are passionate about it, it can provide you with a bright future. Not just as a player, there are various other work opportunities that you can explore in the sports industry. You can choose to become a coach, sports physiotherapist, sports development officer, gym manager, sports journalist, and so much more.

Sports is an essential part of a student’s life, as it focuses not only on the physical fitness aspect but also teaches you various life lessons which help in building your personality and ensuring a disciplined and bright future.