Some Intros...

Hey! My name is Eli Schooley, and I’m a freshman this year at Kansas State University in the Little Apple (Manhattan, KS). For quite some time, I’ve had the desire to start a blog, one that would profile my metamorphosis (how’s that for a word?) from life in fabulous Clay Center to new and exciting Manhattan.

Sure, maybe I’m moving 40 miles down the road, can be home in half an hour if I ever want to be, and already feel that Manhattan is my second home, but to me, the transition to college is more than a physical move. Much, much more.

That being said, I have three goals, or purposes, for this blog:

• A place to profile my move from life at home to life at college.
• An arena in which I can describe my efforts to keep “First Things First” in my life, and hopefully provide some insights for others to do the same (more on this later).
• A setting in which I can write (something I greatly enjoy) about anything I feel inspired to, and hopefully provide some entertainment for others.

I’ve always found personal improvement to be a passion of mine, but I feel that this desire truly took a new role in my life this spring, when I read the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey. I’ve since read First Things First by Stephen Covey, Roger Merrill and Rebecca Merrill and have not only found further inspiration, but this blog’s namesake.

In First Things First, the authors challenge readers to put first things first in their lives. What are first things? Well, that depends on the person. My first things—or at least, what I’d like to make my first things—are God, family, friends, personal betterment, being healthy, and service.

Furthermore, the authors proclaim that in order to live a fulfilling life, one should honor these “first things” in their weekly and daily life. A quote that the book is driven by is “How many people on their deathbed wish they’d spent more time at the office?”, something I find somewhat convicting. Therefore, this semester, I plan to restrict myself to only being involved in extracurricular activities that fulfill my Personal Mission Statement (which emphasizes my “first things”). This is as opposed to High School, when, by my senior year, I found that my schedule was racked with mindless, unfulfilling activities.

As previously mentioned, college is FAR more than a physical move, at least for me. College will be a stretch of my time and life management abilities. I hope you’ll come along for the ride, and most importantly, gain something in the process!