Midterms are right around the corner, which means it’s about time for each of us to take stock of how all our classes are going.

Personally, this is right around the time the semester stops being fun and I start to panic. I’ve failed one class since I’ve been in college, and checking my grades always puts my stomach in knots.

The more I think about it, though, the more I realize there was a simple reason why I failed as miserably as I did.

 I didn’t keep an open dialogue with my professor.

It’s one of those things that seems simple, but I feel that a lot of us are just too afraid to ask our professors how exactly we’re doing.

Many of us don’t realize they really are there to help, and even if they’re busy with other things, there’s no reason why you can’t sit down and go over where you are in the class.

It can mean finding out you’re dead in the water because it’s better to drop a class you won’t pass than to stay in and have an F on your transcript.

When grade reports come in, if you feel you’re not going to do so well, I encourage you to just talk to your professors. You’ll be better off in the long run.