It was 2 AM on a Tuesday, and I was staring at a recursion problem that should have taken me twenty minutes to solve. My eyes were burning, I had a Business Management Internal Assessment due in two days that I hadn't started, and somewhere in the back of my mind, I was trying to remember if I'd submitted my Math homework that morning.

This wasn't a one-time thing. This was basically my life for the past year.

When I tell people I'm doing Scaler's Software Engineering program alongside my IB Diploma, I usually get one of two reactions: either "Wow, that's impressive!" or "Why would you do that to yourself?" Honestly? Both reactions are valid. But if I'm being completely honest, I didn't really know what I was signing up for when I started.

Why I Thought This Was a Good Idea

Let me rewind to the beginning of DP1. Most of my friends were focused entirely on their IB subjects, and that made complete sense. The IB is demanding enough on its own—six subjects, CAS hours, Extended Essay, TOK... the list goes on. But I kept feeling this nagging curiosity about how the apps and systems I used every day actually worked.

I didn't want to wait until university to start learning how to code properly. I'd done some basic programming for Computer Science class, but I wanted more. I wanted to understand data structures, algorithms, system design—the things that felt real and practical, not just theoretical.

So when I came across Scaler, a program known for its rigor and real-world focus, something clicked. I thought, "If I can manage this alongside IB, I'll prove to myself that I can handle pressure. I'll build real skills early. I'll be ahead."

Looking back, I was both right and incredibly naive.

The Reality Check Hit Hard

The first few months were... rough. And by rough, I mean I genuinely questioned whether I'd made a terrible mistake. Scaler wasn't a casual "learn at your own pace" program. It was intensive. Live classes multiple times a week. Assignments that required real problem-solving, not just copying code. Concepts that built on each other, meaning if you didn't understand Arrays properly, you'd be completely lost when it came to Linked Lists. Meanwhile, IB doesn't care that you have other commitments. My Global Politics teacher didn't reduce the workload because I was learning about hash tables on the side. My Business Management IA deadline didn't magically extend itself because I spent three hours debugging a piece of code the night before.

I remember one particularly bad week where I had:

• A Scaler module test on Data Structures
• My Business Management mock exams
• A Global Politics presentation
• Three regular homework assignments
• And I was supposed to attend a Scaler live session at 8 PM on a Tuesday

I failed the module test. Not just "didn't do well"—I actually failed it. I hadn't understood the concepts as deeply as I thought I had because I'd rushed through the practice problems to finish my IB homework. That hurt. A lot.

The Time Management "Systems" That Didn't Work

After that failure, I decided I needed to get serious about time management. I read articles, watched YouTube videos, tried different approaches. Here's what didn't work for me:

The Detailed Hour-by-Hour Schedule: I tried creating these elaborate calendars where every hour was blocked for specific tasks. It lasted three days. The problem? Life doesn't work that way. A programming problem that should take 30 minutes ends up taking two hours. A reading assignment that you thought was 10 pages turns out to be 30. By Tuesday afternoon, my perfect Monday schedule was completely useless.

The "Wake Up at 5 AM" Experiment: I read somewhere that successful people wake up early, so I tried it for two weeks. All I got was sleep deprivation and worse performance in both Scaler and school. Turns out, when you're 17 and still growing, your body actually needs sleep. Who knew?

The "Do Everything Perfectly" Approach: This was my natural instinct—try to give 100% to both Scaler and IB simultaneously. The result? I gave about 60% to both and felt constantly guilty about not doing enough. This approach burned me out faster than anything else.

What Actually Started to Help (Kind of)

I'm still figuring this out, but here are some things that made the juggling slightly more manageable:

Accepting Good Enough: This was the hardest lesson. I'm naturally someone who wants to do things thoroughly. But when you're managing IB and Scaler, sometimes "good enough" has to be enough. That Business Management assignment didn't need to be 20 pages when 12 solid pages would do. That Scaler practice problem set didn't need to be perfect if I'd understood the core concept.

My mentor at Scaler told me something that stuck: "Understanding is more important than completion." That gave me permission to sometimes skip optional assignments if I'd already grasped the topic, and use that time to work on IB deadlines.

The Priority Matrix (But Simpler): Instead of planning every hour, I started just identifying my top three priorities for each day. Not ten things. Three. Usually, one was Scaler-related, two were IB-related, or vice versa. Some days I only completed two. But at least I wasn't drowning in a list of fifteen tasks that I'd never finish anyway.

Batching Similar Work: I noticed I was constantly context-switching—coding for 30 minutes, then writing an essay, then back to debugging, then reading a Global Politics article. The mental switching was exhausting. So I started batching. On some evenings, I'd do only Scaler work. Other evenings, only IB humanities subjects. It helped my brain stay in one mode instead of constantly shifting gears.

Being Honest About My Limits: There were weeks when I had to tell my Scaler mentors, "I have mocks this week, I can't attend the live session." There were times when I had to tell my teachers, "I need an extension because I'm really behind." This was uncomfortable because I hate asking for help or admitting I can't handle something. But I learned that people are generally understanding if you're honest early, rather than disappearing and showing up with nothing completed.

The Unexpected Benefits

Despite all the chaos, I don't regret this decision. Taking on both taught me things I wouldn't have learned otherwise:

I Got Better at Prioritizing Under Pressure: When you have limited time, you get really good at figuring out what actually matters. I learned to spot the difference between busywork and meaningful learning. In Business Management, I stopped rewriting my notes five times and focused on understanding core concepts through practice questions instead. In Scaler, I learned to identify which topics were foundational versus which were "nice to know."

I Developed Real Resilience: There were moments when I wanted to quit. Multiple moments. But pushing through taught me that feeling overwhelmed doesn't mean I'm failing—it just means I'm being challenged. The key was breaking things down into smaller pieces rather than giving up entirely.

My IB and Scaler Learning Started Reinforcing Each Other: This was an unexpected bonus. When I learned about algorithms in Scaler, I started seeing patterns in my Math problems. When I studied market dynamics in Business Management, I thought about how tech companies approach pricing and scalability—concepts we covered in System Design. The two worlds started informing each other in ways I hadn't anticipated.

What I'm Still Getting Wrong

Let me be clear: I haven't "figured it out." I'm still learning, and I still mess up regularly. Just last month, I underestimated how long my Extended Essay research would take, and I had to skip two weeks of Scaler's elective modules. I'm now behind on Gen AI concepts that I really wanted to learn. I'm trying to catch up, but I'm not sure if I will before the module ends. I still have weeks where I feel like I'm doing everything poorly instead of anything well. There are nights when I lie awake thinking about all the things I should have done better. I still struggle with saying no. When my school's MUN Club asked me to lead a session, I said yes even though I was already behind on Scaler assignments. Why? Because I hate disappointing people. I'm working on this, but it's hard.

The Questions I'm Still Asking Myself

How do you know when you're taking on too much versus just being challenged? I still don't have a clear answer to this. Sometimes what feels impossible on Monday feels manageable by Friday. Other times, what seems manageable becomes overwhelming because I underestimated the workload. How do you balance depth versus breadth? Should I go deep into Scaler topics even if it means my IB grades suffer slightly? Or should I prioritize IB since it affects university admissions? I'm still wrestling with this trade-off. How do you deal with the guilt of not giving 100% to everything? I constantly feel like I'm letting someone down—my Scaler mentors, my teachers, myself. Is that just part of taking on multiple challenges, or am I doing something wrong?

What I'd Tell Someone Considering This

If you're thinking about doing something similar—taking on an intensive program alongside IB—here's what I'd say:

First, be really honest about why you're doing it. If it's because you're genuinely curious and it aligns with what you want to learn, that motivation will carry you through the hard weeks. If it's just to have another line on your university application, you'll burn out fast because the internal drive won't be there when things get tough.

Second, accept that you'll make mistakes. You'll miss deadlines. You'll bomb some tests. You'll feel like you're failing at everything. That's normal. The question is: are you learning from it? Are you adjusting? Are you still moving forward even if it's messy?

Third, build a support system. Talk to your teachers and mentors. Let them know what you're juggling. Most of them want to help, but they can't if they don't know what's going on. I was lucky to have Scaler mentors who understood that I was still a student with other commitments, and IB teachers who respected that I was pushing myself outside the classroom.

Finally, be ready to reassess. If something isn't working, it's okay to change course. I have friends who started similar intensive programs and decided to pause or quit, and I don't think less of them. Sometimes the timing isn't right, and that's fine. There's no medal for suffering through something that's making you miserable and not actually helping you learn.

Still Learning

I'm writing this during my DP2 year, with university applications looming and my Scaler program nearing completion. Have I mastered time management? Absolutely not. Am I still figuring out how to balance everything? Yes, every single day. But I've learned that maybe that's the point. Time management isn't something you "solve" once and then you're done. It's a constant process of adjusting, failing, learning, and trying again. The real skill isn't having everything perfectly organized. It's being able to adapt when things fall apart—which they will, regularly—and still finding a way to keep moving forward. If you're reading this because you're considering taking on multiple challenging commitments, or because you're currently drowning in yours, here's what I hope you take away: it's okay to struggle. It's okay to not have it figured out. It's okay to ask for help.

I'm 17, juggling IB and Scaler, and still learning how to manage my time. Some days I feel like I'm getting the hang of it. Other days, I'm that kid at 2 AM staring at a recursion problem with an IA due in two days. And somehow, that's okay.

What about you? If you're balancing multiple commitments—whether it's IB and a program like Scaler, sports and academics, or work and school—how are you managing? What's working for you? What's not? I'd genuinely love to hear your experiences. Drop a comment or reach out—I'm still figuring this out, and maybe we can learn from each other.