As some of you may know, my time living under my parents’ roof has come to an end. The time has come for me to enter the real world. I am now in the driver’s seat, taking control over my journey and purpose, which means applying to colleges and attending the one where I will thrive for the next 4 years. The application process has by no means been stress-free, but I’m extremely grateful to have learned so much about myself, self-worth, and resilience.
When I began the application process in the summer before my senior year of high school, I was thinking about all the wrong things. I let the acceptance rates of various schools determine my self-worth (only for about an hour, but still, it was rough). I compared myself to students that were nothing like me. All I wanted to do was attend the “best” school, but I soon realized that there is no such thing. I just wish I could go back in time and tell myself all the things I now know.
If I could, I’d ask myself “what do you want?” Because I wasn’t thinking about the things that really mattered, I lost sight of what I wanted to study, who I wanted to be surrounded by, where I wanted to be located, and why I wanted these things for myself. After much thought, the answers to these questions became clear as day. I felt like a new person, now able to concentrate on the life I was planning for myself which did not require attending the “best” school, living in the “best” location, or having the “best” items. The only requirement is to be the best version of myself.
Although the college application process is only a small chapter in my life, the lessons I’ve learned from this past year will be valuable for the entirety of my existence, helping me live my best life for many years to come. I will never compare myself to others ever again—ha, this is quite unlikely—so when I do, I will remember that my strengths and achievements cannot go forgotten when doing so. Recognize that we are all unique in our own ways and comparing ourselves to others is like comparing a bad iced coffee to an Andy Warhol piece; you just can’t.
One of the most difficult parts of this process was feeling that my many hours of essay writing, researching, and constant working were all a waste of time. I spent the majority of the past year deciding what I wanted to show admissions committees about myself just for some of them to tell me “we are sorry to inform you…” Of course, those emails were upsetting, but after moving them to where they belonged, my “junk” folder, I felt relieved. Not only did my decision-making process become easier with fewer schools to choose from, but my reaction to rejection changed for the better. I looked for the positives in a situation deemed negative. I decided that my hours of work were not useless, instead, they helped me become better at what I love doing: writing. I also decided to stop chasing and even thinking about things or people that don’t want me as much as I wanted them. Trust me, this will save you many headaches. We have to view rejection as nothing other than redirection because that’s truly what it is.
Our society places college and university on the highest pedestal, making it even harder to separate self-worth from the institution you attend. Education as a whole is what should be placed on the highest pedestal. Anyone who furthers their education, wherever that may be, is outstanding. I’ve been told “it is not about where you go but what you do when you get there” about a million times throughout this experience, and it couldn’t be closer to the truth. Some of my biggest role models whom you may have heard of before—Elizabeth Warren, Steve Jobs, Eddie Murphy, Beverly Cleary—attended community college and are known for their remarkable achievements, not where they spent a couple of years learning. Self-worth is not determined by the school you attend, it is determined by your identity, and if your identity is shaped by the school you go to, please take a walk and simply reflect.
It is my hope that all current and future students applying to college, all people applying for a job, and anybody putting themselves out there can grow from their—sometimes undesirable—experiences like I have and live their best lives.
コメント