Please help me by editing and cutting down the word count by around 75 words :(
Does it answer the question or is it a long shot?
Being an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma recipient, education has always been my number one priority. I would describe myself as a competitive person, who loved being ahead of everyone else in the classroom. To many, this is perceived as a virtue. In my eyes however, it is rather both a benefit and a flaw. It is what allowed me to challenge myself in ways I thought were never possible and to get ahead of what was expected of myself. Yet, it was what also drove me to my near breakdown point of having just too much on my plate.
Senior year was when the real challenge began. Things were immensely rough with the amount of extracurricular I have partaken. I had taken a job offer as a tutor at the local learning center, became a part of more than five clubs, lead my own anti-bullying club and continued my journey as an IB candidate-all while maintaining above a 3.5 G.P.A. SATs and college deadlines began creeping up without me noticing. I was in a time crunch, and its toll on me was quite significant.
Every day I walked the halls of my high school, looking like a drug dealer of some sort- hollows under my eyes that were darker than a raccoon's, hair appearing more of a bird's nest with each passing day, my non existing nails holding my life support known as my coffee mug- everything that showed the world the amount of work and dedication I had put into everything the night before. If I was lucky, I would get at least three hours of sleep per night, not including the nap time I had during lunch. I thought I could handle the workload. I did not see it as that big of challenge in the beginning of the year. But then one day, I simply just snapped.
Whenever I remember that day, chills are sent down my spine, as I forbid these emotions to never again reappear in my life. I was frustrated with the process of standard deviation and had missed the early decision deadline for one of my potential college choices. Members of my club were not cooperating with my arrangement of having club meetings on Thursdays instead of Tuesdays, so I had yet to prepare the meeting for the next day. I had work in an hour, was starving and had a headache due to the lack of sleep I had the night before. Best to say, I was burned out.
I stared intensely at my schoolwork, trying to learn the ways of the TI-83 calculator, when suddenly a single speck of water streamed down my face. Another one followed its path and eventually a waterfall of tears marked my face. I erupted out of my chair, sobbing at this point. I began to yell and scream, while torpedoing all my books and work across my room. I hated everything at that point and just wanted it all to end. It wasn't until my mom rushed in that I realized my wails could be heard throughout the house. She cried out "what is going on?!" in her broken English and I began explaining to her with each breathe full of anger and despair, how much I hated my life.
Carefully, my mother explained that I had too much going on at that point. "You need to prioritize yourself and see what you can and cannot do. I know you want to do everything, but look what it's doing to you." Her motherly advice made me realize that she was right- I could not do everything I wanted. I had to learn set boundaries to myself and learn how to manage my time better.
Apprehensive, I quit my job at the tutoring center, left two clubs that I was not interested in and began to manage my time around what I needed- sleep and meals. I had to learn the hard way that overachieving can definitely be a challenge, but with a bit of wisdom and management, it can be overcome.
Does it answer the question or is it a long shot?
Being an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma recipient, education has always been my number one priority. I would describe myself as a competitive person, who loved being ahead of everyone else in the classroom. To many, this is perceived as a virtue. In my eyes however, it is rather both a benefit and a flaw. It is what allowed me to challenge myself in ways I thought were never possible and to get ahead of what was expected of myself. Yet, it was what also drove me to my near breakdown point of having just too much on my plate.
Senior year was when the real challenge began. Things were immensely rough with the amount of extracurricular I have partaken. I had taken a job offer as a tutor at the local learning center, became a part of more than five clubs, lead my own anti-bullying club and continued my journey as an IB candidate-all while maintaining above a 3.5 G.P.A. SATs and college deadlines began creeping up without me noticing. I was in a time crunch, and its toll on me was quite significant.
Every day I walked the halls of my high school, looking like a drug dealer of some sort- hollows under my eyes that were darker than a raccoon's, hair appearing more of a bird's nest with each passing day, my non existing nails holding my life support known as my coffee mug- everything that showed the world the amount of work and dedication I had put into everything the night before. If I was lucky, I would get at least three hours of sleep per night, not including the nap time I had during lunch. I thought I could handle the workload. I did not see it as that big of challenge in the beginning of the year. But then one day, I simply just snapped.
Whenever I remember that day, chills are sent down my spine, as I forbid these emotions to never again reappear in my life. I was frustrated with the process of standard deviation and had missed the early decision deadline for one of my potential college choices. Members of my club were not cooperating with my arrangement of having club meetings on Thursdays instead of Tuesdays, so I had yet to prepare the meeting for the next day. I had work in an hour, was starving and had a headache due to the lack of sleep I had the night before. Best to say, I was burned out.
I stared intensely at my schoolwork, trying to learn the ways of the TI-83 calculator, when suddenly a single speck of water streamed down my face. Another one followed its path and eventually a waterfall of tears marked my face. I erupted out of my chair, sobbing at this point. I began to yell and scream, while torpedoing all my books and work across my room. I hated everything at that point and just wanted it all to end. It wasn't until my mom rushed in that I realized my wails could be heard throughout the house. She cried out "what is going on?!" in her broken English and I began explaining to her with each breathe full of anger and despair, how much I hated my life.
Carefully, my mother explained that I had too much going on at that point. "You need to prioritize yourself and see what you can and cannot do. I know you want to do everything, but look what it's doing to you." Her motherly advice made me realize that she was right- I could not do everything I wanted. I had to learn set boundaries to myself and learn how to manage my time better.
Apprehensive, I quit my job at the tutoring center, left two clubs that I was not interested in and began to manage my time around what I needed- sleep and meals. I had to learn the hard way that overachieving can definitely be a challenge, but with a bit of wisdom and management, it can be overcome.
