The Pursuit of... by Cassie

The Pursuit of... by Cassie - December 2017 Scholarship Essay

Initially, when people introduce the idea of success, our brains quickly have a negatively connotative impression of frantic rushing to produce a piece of work that gives that student an exquisite grade. However, success in my eyes is not defined by the tension that it causes one to solve a complex equation or even derived from academic achievement; success is defined by the pursuit of something even when you don't love it. It is true that not everyone has a personal passion for every class project or course they take, but this does not mean that they cannot challenge themselves by exceeding expectations of others and expand their limits when completing an assignment.
True success lies within the uniqueness expressed from individual perseverance. In the past I have completed works in class that were base-level knowledge and were underdeveloped pieces that, when truly pursued, could have helped me to become a better researcher, student, and tutor. Even though I might not have had a specific interest or talent in that project area, if I would have looked at the positivity of improvement rather than the negativity of working "too hard", I would have pushed my limits and enhanced my character.
Indeed, my advice would be to not simply slide by a project, even if you could achieve academic success without pursuing it to better yourself. To obtain success, one must not focus on what is simply required, but of what evokes the mind to better itself.