A Reflection of the Past Year by Frances

A Reflection of the Past Year by Frances - December 2022 Scholarship Essay

This year I have been offered many opportunities to succeed. Everyone defines success differently but the general consensus we all hold for success is to inevitably achieve your desires. As I walked into the beginning of this year I didn't even know what those desires I held were. Through spending my time doing multiple sports, joining community volunteer organizations, and getting my first job I believe 2022 has been the foundation for me to become the well-rounded person I would like to become.
Success in life is about networking. I learned this in my last year in high school by interacting with people that will help me achieve my goals. I've learned it's okay to ask for help, especially when I have so many teachers and counselors here to help me. Also, realizing that surrounding myself with like-minded, goal-oriented, and smart friends who also want to achieve something greater for themselves, has encouraged me to stay focused on my end goals. Another thing I've learned fairly quickly this year is that I'm bound to fail. With all the new things I am experiencing, I've realized failure is part of that process so I shouldn't take my failures to heart but instead view them as an opportunity to grow and improve. I find there to be a lot of opportunities when it comes to discovering your weaknesses. What I have learned about myself during the past year is my tendency to overthink and be hard on myself in academic situations. Although from the surface this seems negative it allows me to be diligent in all my work. I've also found that some of the things I thought were strengths could be weaknesses. For example, the competitiveness I have displayed in my school, sports, and my job has led me to have a lot of stress and anxiety but has allowed me to advance in these areas to a higher level. I've needed these positives and negatives to grow but at the same time remembered to be easy on myself this year, and embraced all the failures I've faced. The world has grown in regards to accepting this idea of failure that we all fall victim to.
Something about our culture that I have learned is that we grew up with participation trophies. With the knowledge of the world itself, I've come to realize that the world does not owe you anything. Life is not fair and as simple as that sounds you'll have to work hard to get anywhere in this world. We were taught that we get a medal just for showing up but this does not encourage us or give us any motive to strive to be the best. I learned that you have to earn your respect. It's not just owed to you. You have to work hard to get ahead in life and to be the best. It's not just handed to you. To get the recognition you deserve you have to strive for your own excellence. If you expect everything to be handed to you then your hard work and incentive will cease to exist
I plan to apply everything I have learned this year to help me with the new life that I will soon be starting in 2023. These lessons have shown me what I want to do with my future. For example, the spark of volunteering for my community is now ignited with the desire for me to become a nurse and help people in my community as much as I can every day. I know I can only rely on myself to get there but all the failures I have faced this year have come full circle and I have finally found an equilibrium between how we need the negatives for there to be positives.
In the past year, I've had a lot of successes and failures but it is good to be prepared for both. Overall, I've found I'm a lot more capable than I've realized. For instance, I've learned a lot about time management which is a good skill to possess. Balancing school, sports, a job, and hobbies are not easy. There were times I felt as though I was hanging on a tight hope and when I felt as though that rope would soon snap I asked myself where this dichotomy of success and failure lies. In the end, the learning process is the underlying factor which will help me bring success in my future.