Be the Top of the Pyramid and the Top of Your Class

Balancing your schoolwork with extracurricular activities like cheerleading practice is hard. Sometimes it can feel like you need an extra few hours in the day so that you can get everything you want to do accomplished. Still, until time travel becomes a reality—which probably won't happen while you're in high school—you'll be stuck trying to work out your schedule purely through time management. Here are a few tips for how you can stay on top of the pyramid without having to sacrifice your spot at the top of the class.

• Create Schedules - When you live your daily life around the class schedule set by your school, it can be tempting to just want to spend the rest of your time spontaneously. Unfortunately, when you are an athlete busy with cheerleading as well as any other commitments, you can't afford to be quite that flexible. You should create a schedule for your after-school hours that you try to follow as closely as your school timetable. Budget time for cheerleading practice first, and then add specific chunks of time each day for doing your homework. You can allow yourself short breaks, of course, but remember that when you are busy in the hours immediately after school, you will have to work further into the evening in order to get your daily homework done.

• Study While You Travel - Sometimes on the bus before a big game or competition, all you want to do is think about what lies ahead once you get there. Still, those hours spent in transit can be one of the most productive times to actually get work done. Bring noise-canceling headphones on the bus with you so that you don't get distracted by other people talking around you, and actually commit to hitting the books for at least a portion of your journey. If it's a particularly light homework day, you can treat yourself by studying on one leg of the ride and socializing on the other.

• Avoid Procrastination - When you get an assignment that isn't due for weeks or months, it can be so tempting to put it out of your mind until it's almost due. Unfortunately, procrastination is the worst enemy of the busy teenager. When your schedule is full of so many unpredictable elements, you never know when you may start to get extra busy. If you put off writing your term paper until the last minute, therefore, you might realize too late that the week you were going to do it is the same week as a big competition. By planning ahead instead of procrastinating, you can get things done well in advance of when they're actually due and avoid any unpleasant surprises.

• Don't Sacrifice Sleep - Being prepared for cheerleading and being ready to do well in school both require you to be well-rested. If you don't get enough sleep on a regular basis, you will find yourself getting sick more often, which is exactly what you don't need in the middle of your season. While the very occasional late night may be required to finish a last-minute project or paper, as long as you plan ahead, you should be able to get your work done and still get enough rest to keep your body going strong.

• Find Time for Fun - Obviously cheerleading is fun for you, or you wouldn't still be doing it. Nevertheless, it can also be hard work, and if you spend all of your free time either practicing cheering or doing homework, you are likely to get burned out very quickly. Remember that high school is also about being a kid and relaxing with your friends every once in a while. If you perfect your time management skills early on, you will find you usually have plenty of time to get things done and still maintain a social life. As with everything, balance is key.

There's no denying that cheerleading is important. It's a huge part of your life and you have an entire team who relies on each and every participant. Still, schoolwork is very important as well. Make sure that you never lose sight of the big picture when you are balancing one with the other. After all, you never want to be forced to give up doing what you love because you let your performance on the floor overshadow your performance in the classroom.