You work your whole life for it. You train and train with the hopes of admittance into a competition of the best. You’re among a small percentage of people who actually get the opportunity. You sacrifice sleep and fun to focus on the end goal. Are we talking about the Olympics? Yes, but we’re also talking about Cornell.

While the Olympics gathers those with the best physical abilities in their sport, Cornell brings together the best minds within any given course of study. Athletes and Cornellians move from being the best in their past endeavors to a whole new stage with much fiercer competitors.

At college, like at the Olympics, there are triumphs and failures, comebacks and letdowns. But it all comes back to the same principle – hard work. You didn’t get there by slacking off or being overconfident. People will be jealous of you, but they may not realize the sacrifices you made to get to where you are.

You sure as heck are going to make the most of it while you’re there. Though the Olympics lasts two weeks and college lasts four years (or five, shout-out to Archies), they both fly by way too fast. Don’t take for granted the experience that you earned. Remember the lifetime of hard work that got you to where you are, and allow yourself to enjoy the moment. Countless times I’ve had to remind myself not to get so focused on post-grad that I spend all my time studying, forgetting to take advantage of everything else that Cornell has to offer.

Just like there are different sports at the Olympics, there are different majors at Cornell. Not everyone has the same skills or interests, but both are structured to highlight those differences and showcase everyone’s strong-suits. They don’t compare swimmers to gymnasts, so try not to get caught up in comparing yourself to students in other majors and the stereotypes that come along with that (i.e., Enginerds, Hotelies having it easy). Every sport and every major have their challenges — challenges you won’t understand unless you’re facing them.

You won’t always take gold. You might not even medal at all. But no one is judging you for placing eighth at the Olympics. No, people are just talking about how incredible you are to be at the Olympics in the first place. On days when Cornell throws you from the pommel horse or another student leaves you in their wake, that is when it is most important to remind yourself that you made it to the freaking Olympics.