hey, I'm applying to Yale Young Global Scholars this year and would love to get some feedback on my essay. I'm not a native english speaker so there might be some mistakes.
A rainy afternoon, hot chocolate, and a book to devour. That is where my mind automatically drifts away to when I envision happiness. When I was a little kid, I carried all my favorite books with me. What if the world suddenly ceased to exist and all my belongings tragically vanished? Would I be supposed to just go on and live without my most precious items?
I am what many people refer to as an "introvert". I analyze the world around me, I listen closely during conversations, but mostly, I think. I think about ways I can help my community transition from a patriarchal society to a more equal, accepting environment. I think about youngs girls just a few countries below me having to go through Female Genital Mutilation. I think about ways we can cut down our carbon emissions and create sustainable cities where the economy can thrive without harming our planet. I think about ways we can narrow the inadmissible disparities between the world's multi-billionaires and poor communities living on the edge of famine. My mind brims with ideas and prototypes, dreams and ambitions, and of course, a plan to execute them.
Alas, many see introversion as an antonym of leadership. They associate loudness with power and success with appropriation.
I have long struggled with this "extrovert ideal" that, for a while, almost made me believe I needed to change to be even considered for a chance. However, when you look closer, this disproportionate epitome in society doesn't quite make sense: Extroverts usually occupy leadership roles while introverts are the ones who carefully weigh every decision they make. Teachers often identify better students as extroverts, while introverts have better grades.
With time, I have come to embrace my temperament, my "Soft Power". I no longer see it as a hurdle, but an advantage that helps me be the leader I am today. Without introverts, the world would be void of Chopin's Nocturnes, Van Gogh's Starry Night, and Sartre's Nausea. Introversion isn't having a misfit personality. Introversion is Rosa Park's quiet "no" that engendered the Civil Rights movement.
For those reasons, I will continue to prefer small gatherings over booming parties, to engage in compelling debates, and to indulge in books that help satiate my never-ending curiosity. I will no longer question what I bring to the table. Change is coming, and I plan to be a part of it.
my "Soft Power"
A rainy afternoon, hot chocolate, and a book to devour. That is where my mind automatically drifts away to when I envision happiness. When I was a little kid, I carried all my favorite books with me. What if the world suddenly ceased to exist and all my belongings tragically vanished? Would I be supposed to just go on and live without my most precious items?
I am what many people refer to as an "introvert". I analyze the world around me, I listen closely during conversations, but mostly, I think. I think about ways I can help my community transition from a patriarchal society to a more equal, accepting environment. I think about youngs girls just a few countries below me having to go through Female Genital Mutilation. I think about ways we can cut down our carbon emissions and create sustainable cities where the economy can thrive without harming our planet. I think about ways we can narrow the inadmissible disparities between the world's multi-billionaires and poor communities living on the edge of famine. My mind brims with ideas and prototypes, dreams and ambitions, and of course, a plan to execute them.
Alas, many see introversion as an antonym of leadership. They associate loudness with power and success with appropriation.
I have long struggled with this "extrovert ideal" that, for a while, almost made me believe I needed to change to be even considered for a chance. However, when you look closer, this disproportionate epitome in society doesn't quite make sense: Extroverts usually occupy leadership roles while introverts are the ones who carefully weigh every decision they make. Teachers often identify better students as extroverts, while introverts have better grades.
With time, I have come to embrace my temperament, my "Soft Power". I no longer see it as a hurdle, but an advantage that helps me be the leader I am today. Without introverts, the world would be void of Chopin's Nocturnes, Van Gogh's Starry Night, and Sartre's Nausea. Introversion isn't having a misfit personality. Introversion is Rosa Park's quiet "no" that engendered the Civil Rights movement.
For those reasons, I will continue to prefer small gatherings over booming parties, to engage in compelling debates, and to indulge in books that help satiate my never-ending curiosity. I will no longer question what I bring to the table. Change is coming, and I plan to be a part of it.