DON'T Change Your..... by Alyssa

DON'T Change Your..... by Alyssa - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

As any student knows, when taking a test or quiz, he or she might come across a question they are uncertain about. Eventually, after finishing the rest of the assessment, the student will come back to the question and change his or her original answer. Immediately, sirens are wailing, and the school begins entering a secure lock-down that not even a little critter could escape. I'm not too sure about other students, but I know that this exact situation happens to me more or less quite frequently. Most teachers are usually too busy to pay attention to this sneaky little misdemeanor, but my 5th grade teacher was somehow able to notice this habit of mine early off in my educational career.
Distinctly, I remember her taking me out to the side after class, telling me,
"Alyssa, you're a smart girl. There's no need to change your answers once it's already on the sheet of paper, so DON'T change your answers. Just be confident of your answer, and leave it."
This simple yet effective moment has been stuck with me and popping up in my mind ever since, and I am already a rising senior! See, it's not just about second-guessing oneself on any kind of assessment, but this message can also apply to something more gargantuan than school: LIFE. I interpret this piece of advice with the beautiful meaning of remaining true to oneself regardless of anyone's criticisms, smirks, or skeptical glances.
Nowadays, teenagers face formidable and alarming self-esteem issues from their peers who simply fuel and generate this plague without even noticing. Only the adults and teachers can guide these confused teenagers to realize that they are unique and that they shouldn't doubt themselves in any situation that they come across. Confidence is key in everything, ranging from sports to business transactions to making new friends and other scenarios. If I'm not confident that I can win 1st place in my dance competition, then how am I supposed to prove my worth in front of the judges who critique my every move and facial expression that all make up my performance?
To the girls who put on pounds of make-up each day to impress fellows of the opposite sex, I say, "Toss it all into the trash; there's only one thing to apply each day: CONFIDENCE!" Confidence is the single most thing that people are most attracted to and what reels people into trusting any person or idea.
In today' society, people are lambasted for saying what they feel or think. Despite this, they do this with confidence and don't let obstacles on their road deter them on their trek to reach their dreams. People are free to have their own opinions, yet in high school especially, young adults are ridiculed and ostracized by their supposed "friends" for not conforming to their common views and perspectives.
And all of this ties back to the simple message of not changing one's answers. Even though this lesson remains in the back of my mind, we all make mistakes and change our answers for the worse of results by being desperate and too unsure of our intellectual, among other, abilities. If we have confidence in ourselves, we might just surprise ourselves by the getting the results we desire by simply having faith in ourselves. Confidence breeds positive attitudes which lead to positive actions and finally to positive results that impact the world forever.