The Push I Need by Jack

The Push I Need by Jack - February 2016 Scholarship Essay

Not many people could tell you exactly what they want; let alone how they plan to get it. That kind of concentrated focus is something that people should strive for, because we can’t reach our fullest potential without it. If I could spend the evening at dinner with someone and learn the secrets of their confidence and determination, I would want to spend it with Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin.
As a guitar player of 8 years, asking a master of blues and rock guitar about their technique could take a whole week of dinners. But if I could manage to pull myself out of the swirling vortex of pentatonic scales and hybrid picking, we could talk about the skills that really made him a rock-and-roll god. From the day his old band, The Yardbirds, ended, he knew that he could make something better. He began his search for a new team of musicians, but many of his first picks were taken so he aimed a little lower. He found musicians with raw, unrefined talents and brought them under his wing. The books I’ve read on this stage in the band’s life paint an amazing picture. Robert Plant was a pretty good singer, but he could be better and Jimmy knew this. Robert’s biggest problem was his shyness. Everyone around him, including his parents, thought he was just a hippy, wasting his time singing songs while he should get a real job. Now for most people in his place, this statement would ring true, but he was an exception. Jimmy knew that if he could just get the ball rolling, it would gain momentum and be nearly impossible to stop. The first Led Zeppelin album was almost entirely Jimmy Page’s work. To ensure that his artistic ability would make it to the wax, he funded the entire project. The resulting album was more than enough of a push to get the ball rolling. But that’s enough history on my favorite band.
Jimmy Page has inspired me in more ways than just musically. His story has shown me that life isn’t just about luck; it’s about doing what you can with what you have. Being resourceful is much more effective than floating along waiting for a wave to push you where you want to go. The attitude that Jimmy had towards his goal was so simple, he wanted it, so he went and got it. That is the easy part to understand. I want to protect the environment by utilizing my skills in math and science. I’ve worked hard in school, gotten into college and am working to fund my education. I have my own goals and I’m taking steps towards achieving them, but the confidence is the piece of the formula I’m missing. I would ask him how in the face of doubt; the media’s doubt, the society’s doubt, his own doubts, he managed to push on. Does it come with experience, or are we born with it? Is there a switch in our brains that can just turn off all of the negative thoughts?
Dinner with Jimmy Page would teach me a lot more than some tricks on the guitar. His unrelenting drive and ambition is something that we still feel today. With confidence like his, anyone can reach their goals. I know that if I can just get the ball rolling, I can make a big difference in the world.