Personal Narrative: Michael Jordan

My long and strenuous journey to be like Michael Jordan became an obsession, plaguing me from the second grade to high school. Like many children, I grew up idolizing “His Airness.” Emulating his intensity and competitiveness, I devoted myself to basketball, sacrificing weekend after weekend to the court. Before I knew it, my teammates had dubbed me “Mr. Automatic.”

As I entered high school, I focused my desire for individual success on my personal and academic life. I felt an urgency not only to do my best but also to be the best in every class. Motivated by competition, I turned inward, avoiding group study sessions. In addition to losing sight of the team -- of my friends and how we could learn together -- I also lost sight of my own needs, failing to seek basic accommodations for my hearing impairment. Trapped within the walls of this MJ-like worldview, I defined success solely in terms of individual greatness -- in terms of how much better I did than my peers.

By the time my sophomore year came around, I had become a victim of my own aspirations to achieve greatness.

I entered pre-calculus the same way I entered every other class in high school: as a game, a trophy and an easy A that I could achieve with my (perceived) supreme intellect alone. Sure enough, the course was more challenging than anything I had encountered, and my previous game plan left me ill-equipped. My first test experience was eye-opening. It proved to be a resounding failure that stays with me to this day. It was only after this test that I began to question my strategies and, indeed, the very way that I had been approaching my

education.
I realized that collaboration with others (teachers, parents and especially friends) can lead to success and more learning opportunities. I had failed to recognize the bigger picture. MJ didn’t reach his pinnacle with his own skill alone but with the support and guidance of his coaches, teammates and fans. This is when I realized that support and guidance from my teachers, friends and family are essential parts on the path to success. MJ’s six championships were not always about the individual, but the team as a whole. Since my failure, I have developed a strong appreciation for collaboration with others. What helped me succeed on my second go around with pre-calculus were all the hours Mr. Erickson spent with me after school and all the weekends spent studying with friends. Week after week, the same questions continued to perplex me. How did the tension in the string relate to the weight of the box? What is the two sided limit at a point of discontinuity? Questions like these filled me with stress, but this time around, I had a network of support. Admitting to myself – and to my parents, friends and teachers – that collaboration, whether it be giving or receiving help, was my first true step to being truly successful.