Imagine standing at a crossroads, with one path leading to the expected, traditional route of high school straight to university. But you wanted more. You craved adventure, self-discovery and a break from the well-trodden path. So, you made a bold choice: the gap year.

During my gap year, I dabbled in various things, but what really shaped me were the experiences I'm about to share. Working in my father’s business during this time was eye-opening. It was like peeking behind the curtain of the business world, gaining insights that would shape my future career. 

However, not everyone saw the value in my decision to take a gap year. I often faced criticism from my relatives who believed I was wasting precious time, but little did they know, it was laying the foundation for something greater. I saw this as an opportunity to change perceptions, which led me to start my Instagram blog - Journey Discovery, where I shared my gap year experiences and built a supportive community.

One of the highlights of my gap year was attending a summer school at Cambridge University. Talk about stepping out of my comfort zone! Those two weeks were more than just a chance to experience university life early; they were about pushing my limits, embracing independence and immersing myself in different cultures.

I even found myself getting into sports, a twist I never saw coming. Whether it was a morning run or a calming yoga session, these activities grounded me in the present moment. Yet, a core belief has always resonated within me: the responsibility to embrace and celebrate our cultural roots. This powerful conviction became the seed of my passion project, "Rediscover Bharat." Through this blog, I embarked on a journey to share India's rich culture and heritage. 

None of this would have been possible without the unwavering support of my parents and the guidance of my teachers and mentors. Their belief in me propelled me forward, shaping me into the person I am today.

As I reflect on my journey of resume building, I realize it was more than just a checklist of achievements. It was a journey of self-discovery, where I uncovered my true passions and values. In the end, my gap year wasn't just about preparing for college; it was about stepping away from the traditional path to finding my own unique way forward. Thinking about taking a gap year? My biggest advice would be to embrace the unexpected! You never know how the things that surprise you the most might just unlock the door to your true self.

In the journey towards higher education, many of us dream of attending a prestigious college and achieving top grades. I, too, was among those ambitious students until a dinner conversation with my parents sparked a new idea: pursuing my education abroad. Little did I know, this path required more than just dreams – it demanded a standout student profile.

Navigating through the maze of opportunities in grade 11, I found myself overwhelmed. Choosing the right activities that truly resonated with me felt like searching for a needle in a haystack. That's when I turned to Lesli India for guidance and my journey took an unexpected turn.

The initial sessions with Lesli were all about self-discovery – what I enjoyed doing, what areas I wanted to explore and where I aimed to improve. With their help, I narrowed down my choices and dove into various activities, from Model United Nations to organizing blood donation drives and undertaking online courses.

Meeting my mentors regularly kept me accountable and motivated. These experiences taught me the importance of consistency, time management and giving back to society. As my profile grew, so did my confidence.

But when it came time to condense my experiences into a resume for university applications, I faced a new challenge. Despite the irony of a life filled with diverse experiences being squeezed into two pages, continuous support from my mentors and editors helped me articulate my journey effectively.

Just as I thought I had it all figured out, life threw me a curveball and I made the spontaneous decision to take a gap year. Little did I know, this year would become the most transformative chapter of my life. Buckle up, because what happened next was beyond anything I could have imagined. So, stay tuned as I unravel the adventures that awaited me during my year of exploration.

Mangoes and ice creams and raindrops on mud, swimming sessions and endless playtime and not to forget the vacations!! These are my memories of Summer!!

Running around the society premises playing hide and seek or bicycling endlessly in the heat. Boys  engaged in boisterous games of cricket or football pausing just to grab a glass of cool Rasna or Tang from the ever-caring aunties and rush back not to miss another moment of their game. Not a care about the sweltering heat or sun tan. 

Devouring mangoes and ice-creams took care of any worry about heat stroke, and grandmother’s tonic of the ever cooling “Aam panah”,  guaranteed that none of us ever suffer from dehydration.

Evenings were spent gossiping with friends, going for evening strolls or reading a book. Holiday homework was completed in the last week of the vacation. Though our vacations were spent playing as if there was no tomorrow, we also did help  washing the car with our father, helped our mother in the kitchen or just laid the tables. Small things indeed, but they yet taught us invaluable lessons in building family bonds, being useful and learning important  life-skills in the process.

But then suddenly life has changed for all of us. Today, with Summer comes the challenge for parents to keep their kids occupied in constructive activities away from PlayStations, Netflix, Instagram and all the other screen addictions.

The yesteryear’s structure of free playing, reading or learning has been replaced by classes- classes for academics, for Art, Music and coaching for numerous sports such as Football, Badminton, Swimming. The list of things to do is endless and the  children and parents are running from one class to another barely able to grab a bite in between.

Given the plethora of activities to engage in, can naturally create a pressure to not miss-out on one more activity and left behind. The pressure can even be so perverse that one might look at any free time as ‘wasted time’ to be put to effective and productive use by joining one more class. In this mindless race, we forget that childhood will never come back, children will never have ‘Summer Vacations’ to enjoy. Yet, some invisible pressure of ‘Competition’ seems to drive us all and effectively make this beautiful, carefree ‘Summer Vacation’ into a hectic race to catch up with one more class. 

So, here are few measures you can take to strike a balance-

1. Give them space- Allow children  their ‘Me time’ which is totally their own, not curated by you. When they know they have a few hours to themselves doing things they really want to, they will not resent when you want them to do something constructive or to enhance their profile. Giving them their space and time will encourage their creativity and independent thinking -key qualities universities look for in a student.

2. Lighten the burden- Do not burden children with too many activities. While you may be worried about how to make your child’s resume stand out, but the key is to make them do their activities with passion and consistency rather than making them run around in all directions at the same time. Identify 2-3 activities which can be done during Summer Vacations like pursue one hobby class, do an Internship or pick up a community service which they can continue over the weekends later. Or let them begin a project, they are passionate about. Plan smarter!

3. Bond- A good time for some family bonding. No upcoming exam stress, no pressing assignment, so use this time to relax, connect as a family. Communicate with your child, go for a vacation (and please don’t take textbooks  with you). Have an evening to just be  at home, watching a movie, eating popcorn. Trust me, you will miss this when you face an ‘Empty Nest’

4 Time Management-. Help children  create a schedule. Talk to them about the importance of time management, of not procrastinating. Make sure to discuss with them the classes which are important and  leave out the unnecessary ones. 

5. Break the Monotony- Plan different, plan interesting.  Let children explore different ideas such as  organizing  a senior citizen financial literacy program, surveying the local businesses and formulating a plan to increase their sales, designing a website for the local municipal school and so on.

Give children the opportunity to think, create and innovate for they are the ones who will shape our future!!