Personal Narrative American Athlete Jesse

Personal Narrative

American athlete Jesse Owens once said, "We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline and effort." This quote sums up my personal view on life, and does so beautifully. I believe in pursuing one's dreams; also, I think determination and passion need to be backed by hard work and dedication. There is no formula for success, no potion one can drink, no secret code that enables one to achieve success. Nevertheless, there is a combination of qualities and there is definitely an attitude that can help you make your dreams come true. I have always tried to lead my life according to a set of principles that represents the core of my personal beliefs and the guiding light of my actions. I believe in passion and dedication; my heart is in everything I do irrespective of the outcome or the sacrifices that particular task involves.

Whenever I think back to the moment when I found out I had been accepted into Florida State University, my heart pounds and my mind starts racing, very much like it did when I got the news. This was, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the single most important moments in my life. Along with joy and excitement, I experienced one of the best feelings I can think of, that of fulfillment. I was extremely satisfied because I felt that all the hard work had not been in vain. I had achieved my goal, and had taken the first step towards making my dream of getting a solid education, come true. Thinking back, I truly believe it was the happiest day of my life.

There was much more to my desire to attend FSU than simply getting a college education. I had always wanted to attend university after high school. My dream and at the same time, my most important goal, is to attend law school as I want to become an attorney. This is why I am determined to make the most of this opportunity, learn as much as I possibly can, and evolve both on a personal, and academic level. I have high hopes for myself, and I will not settle for less. Nevertheless, a solid academic education is not the sole prerequisite for success. Personal evolution is also required in order to succeed, irrespective of one's goals. I believe that determination is very important; in order to remain determined and motivated, one needs not to lose sight of their goal. I think that staying focused is the key to success because it is very easy to lose your way especially when you are young. Education, as well as traits of character, are very important in this case. Also, I think that nothing can be achieved without hard work. And in order to work hard, and spend time acquiring knowledge and improving oneself, one needs to be passionate. Passion is what made me go on, and attempt to be a better person every day. I feel my goal getting stronger every single day, and this passion and determination allow me not to feel pressured, but happy at the thought of what is to come during college. At the same time, passion is the element which makes one work towards achieving a certain goal without inducing feelings of frustration or even fatigue.

Staying true to oneself and what one grew up believing in is perhaps synonymous to the longer route to success but getting there will definitely be ten times more rewarding. Einstein once said, "Try not to become a man of success, but rather a man of value." I constantly seek new growth opportunities in my personal and academic life. I believe in persistence in pursuit of worthy objectives even in the face of difficulty, opposition, or discouragement. Self-confidence has always helped me to deal with any kind of challenges; moreover, I truly believe that challenges are the engine of progress because one can learn more about oneself and the world when faced with new and unusual situations.

College is a different world compared to high school. I have always considered it to be a serious environment; students are encouraged to study and progress. I know that at times, my classes will be quite challenging. But at the same time, I feel that the only way to evolve is to prove to myself that I have the intellectual capacity, discipline and drive to pass these classes. A significant aspect of a college education is developing critical reasoning. It is not so much to memorize facts and figures, but to be able to penetrate ideas and concepts and extract their essence. Understanding the way mechanisms work is a sine-qua-non condition in order to gain the ability to deconstruct ideas and theories, and apply them to one's personal and professional life. In my opinion it is through this kind of individualized approach that higher education is particularly relevant to personal and professional growth. I believe that college education relies on taking an active interest in learning, but also on being able to receive the information that professors transmit to their students. This is where passion comes in again, and passion is not something that can be taught, no matter how good the teacher is.