Personal Essay: Why I Believe In Hard Work

I believe in working hard for what you want. You have to work for something if you really want to achieve it. Hardworking came to mind because when I asked what my philosophy was, I said it was working hard. I believe in this because for me it’s true, and it is true for many others. I think everyone needs to at least try to get an education. Not everyone can get an education, but you can still try.

When I was in the sixth grade I started failing classes and I didn’t know how to fix it. I was to afraid to ask the teacher for help because I was far enough behind already. I didn’t have a lot of friends either, which decreased my chances farther from getting help. My mother was never good in school either, and my step-dad was always at work. So I realized I would have to get better on my own. At that moment I started paying a lot more attention to what was going on around me. I also had the privilege of a tutor in class, and math was her specialty.

Slowly but surely I became better in my academics.

Once I started getting better in math I started getting better in other subjects. I think my hard work was shown because when I went to River Bend I was placed in classes with people I considered smart. The classes were a bit challenging but I did well. The second year I was at River Bend I moved up even farther in my academics and then I was the “smart” person. People would come to me if they had questions, and I liked being the one to help them.

During my eighth grade year, I thought I was failing math and that I was learning nothing from it. Everyone was good at one particular subject in math and I was the worst at it. Then there was one subject I happened to be particularly good at and most other people had struggled with. I failed most of the tests and I had a chance to retake them. Math was the only class I was making a “B” in. When it came time to take the math EOG, I expected failure. Instead, I made a four on the

test.
I applied to Challenger also. Everyone I knew was accepted, except for me. My mom and I knew that the other people who were accepted didn’t have as much potential as I did, you can imagine what my mother told Challenger. Next, my step-dad called and got an explanation on why I wasn’t accepted. Turns out that I was too advanced for Challenger and they couldn’t teach me anything, they said Challenger would not be challenging for me. They said I was in the top 10% of Catawba County, and if I lived in Alexander County I would have been in the top 2%.
Someo may not think I’ve come far, but to me everything I have done has made a difference in my education. My mother wants me to be better than she is, and I think I already am. She didn’t know how to learn or grow, but I had to teach myself. I believe that if you put your mind to something you can do it. Hard work can take you places you never thought you would go, three years ago I never would have thought I would be where I am today. I’m living proof of hard work, and I’m always going to be the best I can be.