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By Hadrian Le, Bachelor of Marketing and Media
Whether new to GLP or halfway through the program, have you ever had the pressure of gathering points for the GLP? Or have you ever felt the strain of finishing this program crushing your mind?
If you have those thoughts, let’s change how you think about GLP. The GLP is supposed to be all about YOU and your growth!
The GLP journey should be all about you, your interests, your learning, and your growth. The GLP activities that you join should be attractive to you. The topic you’re about to dive into should make you feel interested. The conversation you will have should make you excited.
From someone who is at 99% of achieving the GLP merit in two years: don't do it for the GLP points; do it for YOU! Here are a few tips on how to do that.
Tip 1: Do not do the things you don't enjoy
This will sound absolutely obvious but you would be surprised at the amount of people who force themselves to do the things they don't like just for the points. Apart from completing ten Colloquia, the GLP program lets you do quite a lot of activities that fit around GLP values.
So why not make use of it? Do whatever you feel like doing! If you cannot figure out what you like, at least do not do the things you don't enjoy. A question to ask yourself is: “If this activity does not have GLP points, will I do it?” and you will know the answer.
Tip 2: Brainstorm the big categories of the things you wanna learn more about and choose the activities based on it
If you are not exactly sure about what you want to do in this journey, try to choose a big topic and gradually break it down. It is a big ask to know what exactly you want to do, so it is okay to experience around. After all, without experiencing enough, how can you know what you like and what you do best? You can take around 5 minutes to do a mindmap, list down the big topics, and research around to see whether the GLP has something like that. Moreover, you can add activities that you know on your own to the map. It can look something like below:
And remember, you can find your own GLP activities, so just play around and explore. Check GLP Upcoming Opportunities newsletters, your local news board, or your own network for any activities that you are fond of. You might be recommended by your friends and families for some activities as well. There will always be a few (if not all) activities that you can claim GLP points you don’t know about. If unsure, ask your GLP advisors!
Tip 3: Do not burn yourself out, prioritize your well-being
There is absolutely no rush to finish this program so don’t burn yourself out trying to do everything at the same time. You will have around two or three years to complete the Undergraduate GLP, so space it out across all semesters as you don’t need to pack your schedule full of GLP activities. You can try to plan ahead (consult with your advisor if necessary), ask your friends to register for the same activities, seek friends' support if stressed, and let yourself have a break (e.g., you don’t need to claim points during the semester break, take a really good break mate!)
Remind yourself that this is a personal and growing journey, not an F1 race.
Tip 4: Reflection and pat yourself on the back after each journey
I honestly do not think much about GLP points during the academic semester. I only think about GLP points when I wrap up my semester (after all exams and assessments are done). I usually spend a few days sitting down reflecting on all the activities I have done and registering GLP points for them. So my advice is to enjoy the ride, the points are small gifts you have after the ride (like lollies after dinner)! However, the amount of paperwork accumulated at the end of every semester is mind-blowing so this might be the only minus point.
If that is not for you, you can claim the points right after finishing the activity and get that dopamine hit when you know your GLP points are approved!
It is always a magic moment realizing that you have survived another semester, going through ups and downs to be here still, surviving and thriving. Seeing your GLP completion rate increase bit by bit and recalling all the memories you have from the last semester will make you realize you have done such a great job. For me, I usually sit down and write everything I have in mind in a journal. I would recall all the memories, revisit all the good feedback I have received, and feel grateful for all the amazing people I have met along the way. This writing method helps me find the peace in knowing I am trying and growing every day.
Whether you claim 10 points or 100 points the past semester, pat yourself on the back knowing that you have done a great job.
Author’s note: I want to express my gratitude to my dear friend Jack Rowland for generously providing contributor quotes for this article. Thank you for giving excellent feedback to the author while writing this article. A special shout-out to Troy Prowse for always supporting me. People like Jack and Troy are the reasons why this community is growing and thriving.