1st semester slc
how i'm doing 1/4 of the way into senior year
Last year, we were introduced to Angela Duckworth’s “Characteristics of Highly Successful People”, which is basically a list of common traits that one needs to be successful in all aspects. The list includes traits such as optimism, zest, grit, curiosity, social-intelligence, gratitude, self-control (general), self-control (work), and self-control (interpersonal). Out of these nine characteristics, I would have to say that the two I feel like I have and do well in are curiosity and social-intelligence.
I have been able to exhibit both of these traits through my YPTA (Young People Taking Action) project. I showcased my curiosity when I chose what I wanted to do with my YPTA project. Before this year, I never thought that I would have taken an interest in reforming the sexual education programs offered at schools (or not offered at all, in some cases). However, when I helped my friend come up with the idea for her own project, I was intrigued and drawn to this issue. In addition to having a personal connection to the topic, I saw a huge potential for expanding this project far beyond the basic biology and anatomy that goes into it. I started to brainstorm how I would incorporate a Law aspect into the project and decided that I would tackle the laws and regulations that prevent sexual education classes from being offered in schools. As for the social-intelligence aspect, I have shown this throughout the actual YPTA meetings that my group has as well as regular class group work. I am proud to say that I have found myself to act as a mediator when my YPTA group gets together. I help my group stay on task, but also be as effective as possible when trying to get everyone’s opinions and ideas into the project in one way or another. I also try to get everyone to contribute and participate in the “tough” conversations where we have to make difficult decisions regarding the project. Although I think that I am doing very well in these two areas, I know I still have a lot of progress to make in the other areas/ characteristics.
If I had to choose what my two weakest characteristics/ traits out of those nine listed, I would choose optimism and self-control. In regards to optimism, I think the reason I have not been able to showcase it as much as I would like to would be because of all of the stress that I am currently facing from my college applications and my personal life. That heavier burden of stress plus the fact that I am very tired all of the time does not let me be as alive and active in class as I would like to be. I find myself sitting with my arms crossed a lot these days, but I have a plan to end that. I believe that if I can find snacks, such as dark chocolate, strawberries, mints, and grapes, that I can eat during break that will “make me happy”, I will be able to be more positive in class. I am sure we all have heard that saying that says “Put good in, get good out”. Going back to improving my self-control, by which I mean staying fully invested in what is going on in class and doing my school work to the best of my abilities, I think that the same plan of attack will work. It has been scientifically proven that snacks such as fruit, dark chocolate, and mints can help your brain stay awake and focused. So if I am able to eat these snacks during breaks or whenever I need a “pick-me-up”, I can kill two birds with one stone and improve both my optimism through the yummy taste and my self-control through the biological benefits of their consummation.
In addition to improving those two character traits, I would also like to improve my understanding of US Government and learn about it more deeply. Is is something that has always interested me and I would love to learn about this year before I go off to college. It also ties in with what I want to study, so it will be cool to see how what I learn about the government affects the practice of actual lawyers.
I have been able to exhibit both of these traits through my YPTA (Young People Taking Action) project. I showcased my curiosity when I chose what I wanted to do with my YPTA project. Before this year, I never thought that I would have taken an interest in reforming the sexual education programs offered at schools (or not offered at all, in some cases). However, when I helped my friend come up with the idea for her own project, I was intrigued and drawn to this issue. In addition to having a personal connection to the topic, I saw a huge potential for expanding this project far beyond the basic biology and anatomy that goes into it. I started to brainstorm how I would incorporate a Law aspect into the project and decided that I would tackle the laws and regulations that prevent sexual education classes from being offered in schools. As for the social-intelligence aspect, I have shown this throughout the actual YPTA meetings that my group has as well as regular class group work. I am proud to say that I have found myself to act as a mediator when my YPTA group gets together. I help my group stay on task, but also be as effective as possible when trying to get everyone’s opinions and ideas into the project in one way or another. I also try to get everyone to contribute and participate in the “tough” conversations where we have to make difficult decisions regarding the project. Although I think that I am doing very well in these two areas, I know I still have a lot of progress to make in the other areas/ characteristics.
If I had to choose what my two weakest characteristics/ traits out of those nine listed, I would choose optimism and self-control. In regards to optimism, I think the reason I have not been able to showcase it as much as I would like to would be because of all of the stress that I am currently facing from my college applications and my personal life. That heavier burden of stress plus the fact that I am very tired all of the time does not let me be as alive and active in class as I would like to be. I find myself sitting with my arms crossed a lot these days, but I have a plan to end that. I believe that if I can find snacks, such as dark chocolate, strawberries, mints, and grapes, that I can eat during break that will “make me happy”, I will be able to be more positive in class. I am sure we all have heard that saying that says “Put good in, get good out”. Going back to improving my self-control, by which I mean staying fully invested in what is going on in class and doing my school work to the best of my abilities, I think that the same plan of attack will work. It has been scientifically proven that snacks such as fruit, dark chocolate, and mints can help your brain stay awake and focused. So if I am able to eat these snacks during breaks or whenever I need a “pick-me-up”, I can kill two birds with one stone and improve both my optimism through the yummy taste and my self-control through the biological benefits of their consummation.
In addition to improving those two character traits, I would also like to improve my understanding of US Government and learn about it more deeply. Is is something that has always interested me and I would love to learn about this year before I go off to college. It also ties in with what I want to study, so it will be cool to see how what I learn about the government affects the practice of actual lawyers.