J_dawgasian
Oct 12, 2011
Undergraduate / "I'm not good enough..." - What matters to you and why? Stanford supplement [5]
What matters to you and why (2000 characters). Thoughts on my essay please!
"Lance Armstrong, survivor of brain, testicular, and lung cancer, wins his 7th Tour De France title!" was the title of an article I was reading.
"Interesting..." I said as I pinned the article to my fridge and left for the school bus. Little was I aware that Mr. Armstrong had left a significant influence seeded in the back of my memories waiting to be tapped.
Fast forward in time and today is my third month in middle school. I failed the first midterm of my math test. My teacher told me I wasn't smart enough to be in her class. I left the classroom holding back the tears when she handed me the "class drop" forms. Disappointed and feeling beaten down, I went home and got out my algebra book and started vigorously studying for the next test. To my surprise, the next test I failed again.
"I'm not good enough..."
That's what my teacher told me. That's what my parents told me. That's what my classmates from math class told me. But that's not what Lance told me. I thought to myself, "Alright, I failed twice now. I guess I should just quit..." Then I thought back to the article pinned on my fridge, "What would Lance Armstrong say? He would tell me 'geez kid I had cancer 3 times and a better excuse to give up but I didn't. But you? You've just failed an infinitesimal math test! If you give up now how are you going to deal with things like cancer in the future? Keep going, don't stop now, learn from your mistakes, and don't let anybody bring you down and yes you're good enough!'" This is what Lance told me subconsciously and I listened.
I never missed a single answer the rest of the year.
Will power is a key quality to success in life. What matters to me most is having the will to not give up, even if it's something as minor as a math test. Like Lance Armstrong, I'm going to rise to the challenges in my life without backing out when the going gets tough. This math test was just a speed bump on the road. I learned that failure is the gateway to success. Just don't give up.
What matters to you and why (2000 characters). Thoughts on my essay please!
"Lance Armstrong, survivor of brain, testicular, and lung cancer, wins his 7th Tour De France title!" was the title of an article I was reading.
"Interesting..." I said as I pinned the article to my fridge and left for the school bus. Little was I aware that Mr. Armstrong had left a significant influence seeded in the back of my memories waiting to be tapped.
Fast forward in time and today is my third month in middle school. I failed the first midterm of my math test. My teacher told me I wasn't smart enough to be in her class. I left the classroom holding back the tears when she handed me the "class drop" forms. Disappointed and feeling beaten down, I went home and got out my algebra book and started vigorously studying for the next test. To my surprise, the next test I failed again.
"I'm not good enough..."
That's what my teacher told me. That's what my parents told me. That's what my classmates from math class told me. But that's not what Lance told me. I thought to myself, "Alright, I failed twice now. I guess I should just quit..." Then I thought back to the article pinned on my fridge, "What would Lance Armstrong say? He would tell me 'geez kid I had cancer 3 times and a better excuse to give up but I didn't. But you? You've just failed an infinitesimal math test! If you give up now how are you going to deal with things like cancer in the future? Keep going, don't stop now, learn from your mistakes, and don't let anybody bring you down and yes you're good enough!'" This is what Lance told me subconsciously and I listened.
I never missed a single answer the rest of the year.
Will power is a key quality to success in life. What matters to me most is having the will to not give up, even if it's something as minor as a math test. Like Lance Armstrong, I'm going to rise to the challenges in my life without backing out when the going gets tough. This math test was just a speed bump on the road. I learned that failure is the gateway to success. Just don't give up.