Hey, this is my essay for the stanford supplement. Please take a look at it and tell me what you think. I don't want you to edit it for grammatical mistakes, just tell me if you like the content, the way I presented the idea, if it's convincing and if I should add/change anything.
Thanks, in advance.
Here is the essay:
There was a point in my life that I thought I was Superman; that I could solve all of humanity's problems. I would come up with the Theory Of Everything, design a supersonic aircraft and many other similar tasks. A usual day, back then, would include at least one hour of physics study, another of programming, another of chemistry and so on. At the end of the day I was enervated but confident that I am on my way to break new scientific grounds. However, my Superman suit was shattered a few months later in a school class. We were talking about a topic in astrophysics and I, as a self-proclaimed expert, started talking. In the beginning everything was going smoothly and my classmates were impressed by my knowledge, but suddenly a student asked me a question, which I had no answer for. I started stammering and sweating; the teacher understood my uncomfortable position and with a humorous joke continued the discussion. When I returned home I was devastated and started thinking what I have done so far. I realized that my effort to be great in a broad range of fields resulted in being moderate in all of them; I had only superficial knowledge. After this epiphany I changed my lifestyle. I decided to pure my life into a few specific fields and try to be the best at them, have deep and extensive knowledge. That's the only path to true knowledge, which liberates people. It's better to be great at one single thing than to be average in many. This concept has been a lighthouse throughout my life and has influenced most of my decisions.
Thanks, in advance.
Here is the essay:
There was a point in my life that I thought I was Superman; that I could solve all of humanity's problems. I would come up with the Theory Of Everything, design a supersonic aircraft and many other similar tasks. A usual day, back then, would include at least one hour of physics study, another of programming, another of chemistry and so on. At the end of the day I was enervated but confident that I am on my way to break new scientific grounds. However, my Superman suit was shattered a few months later in a school class. We were talking about a topic in astrophysics and I, as a self-proclaimed expert, started talking. In the beginning everything was going smoothly and my classmates were impressed by my knowledge, but suddenly a student asked me a question, which I had no answer for. I started stammering and sweating; the teacher understood my uncomfortable position and with a humorous joke continued the discussion. When I returned home I was devastated and started thinking what I have done so far. I realized that my effort to be great in a broad range of fields resulted in being moderate in all of them; I had only superficial knowledge. After this epiphany I changed my lifestyle. I decided to pure my life into a few specific fields and try to be the best at them, have deep and extensive knowledge. That's the only path to true knowledge, which liberates people. It's better to be great at one single thing than to be average in many. This concept has been a lighthouse throughout my life and has influenced most of my decisions.