Growth by Sandra jean

Growth by Sandra jean - September 2020 Scholarship Essay

Sandra Holtzinger
“Growth” Goals essay
My goal this year is to become more informed. This pertains to many areas of my life, but more specifically, my goals are: to read more, take challenging classes, be attentive of current events, and to be more empathetic towards others. Each of these will assist me in becoming a more well-rounded student. I believe it is quite important to always strive to become better. If I am constantly growing, and am aware of my flaws, it becomes easier to stay humble. There is always somewhere to grow in life, therefore creating goals can be extremely beneficial. One of my personal flaws has been being misinformed or uninformed, which is why this goal will be beneficial for me.

The first way I will become more informed is reading more. I believe this area is important to be an informed student because it has been proven in many scientific studies. Reading expands vocabulary. With a large vocabulary, I will improve my verbal skills. Through reading, I will also heighten my memory skills. My goal is to read a minimum of one hour each day. Reading is the most important activity to become a more well-rounded student.

Next, I will take more challenging classes. I have executed this already this year. I have enrolled to take a college level psychology class while meanwhile, enrolled in 7 high school classes. I chose to do this to further my knowledge in my passion of psychology. Because of this, I will be well informed prior to earning my degree. I believe it is important to challenge yourself with classes. If I did not challenge myself, I would never truly learn.

I have also decided to be more attentive of current events. I have found it most beneficial to read politically both left and right leaning sources. This is important because I would like to be well informed about each issue before I take a stance. I will never truly expand my mind to new ideas if I only read news biased to my opinions. It is also beneficial for debates. You must know the opposing argument better than the opposer if you would truly like to succeed. It is important to not be biased in opinions, rather, informed.

Lastly, I would like to become more empathetic. If I am more attentive that people outside myself are struggling , I will be more empathetic and understanding of their feelings. Everyday I must consider that others are struggling and I need to treat them with dignity and respect.

This year, I am striving to grow. I would like to exit this year knowing that I have improved as a person whether that’s, academically, socially, or spiritually. Goal setting will help me to observe my flaws, and work to improve upon them.