As a biology major in the STEM field, I had trouble overcoming my perfectionist mindset. Before, I was used to always excelling specifically in my science courses. Once I arrived at Spelman College, my perception changed. During the spring semester of my first year, I kept on receiving various exam grades that were not my “best”. Eagar to try harder and analyze my study skills, I tried a variety of tactics to help improve and excel in my science courses. I felt as though when I tried my best, I was not receiving the outcome that I wanted. I instantly started to give up on myself as well as compare myself to other STEM majors in my class thinking, “How are they excelling and I am putting in 100% effort and not receiving my end goal that I want”? …show more content…
I struggled with this mindset until the summer of 2016. Last summer, I participated in the Summer Health Professions Education Program at Howard University that further stimulated my interest in doing research. I was also granted the opportunity to meet and network with current doctors that performed research as well. Upon meeting successful doctors their career experiences catapulted my interest even more towards the entering the field of research. Most importantly, while listening to their journey on how they were able to successfully complete their career goal, it shocked me to hear how each of them struggled similarly to my experience while in undergraduate and were still able to excel in their careers. Specifically, while speaking to a doctor who is a Spelman Alumna, she told me that it is okay to not be perfect and as a stem major no one is perfect. I always had a mindset that every doctor and scientist never failed. From that point on, I constantly remind myself that I need to continue and push through towards my career goal. Most importantly that I can to whatever field as long as I put my mind to it and never give
This was mainly a result of experiencing sudden freedom, going from a nurturing private school environment to a college environment. I had to adapt to the situation and although at the time I maybe didn’t do as well in the first year, I have grown as an individual and improved my focus and determination within the second year. I now set myself weekly targets and pride myself in doing my work to a very high standard. I also set myself personal targets and enjoy going to the gym daily which has helped me maintain a positive mental attitude.
Did you ever strive to get to a higher stage in life? Maybe it had something to do with the goal that you wanted to fulfill , or maybe you were just anxious to complete that one goal you set for yourself in life. If you understand what it means to strive for a goal you can understand why being a student at SciTech High is so important to me. Going to SciTech will mean the world to me because it will help me succeed and pursue my dreams. Attending SciTech High would open new doors for me and give me more opportunities to experience the world in a new way. At the same time, I will be intellectually sound, determined, and confident as I continue my education.
This was one of the main aspects that brought me to this crossroad that I am at now and that I faced at the beginning of my college career. When I decided to go to college I wanted to be a doctor, so that is how I started out. Looking at the challenges ahead of me on that path I did some research and decided to change paths and pursue a career in Health Services. In health services I can still help people the way I like and it also fits into my plan for myself. With what makes me myself I look at the crossroad I am at now and all I think to do is to keep moving forward and straight. Looking back is a different me and going left or right provides many new challenges, so forward is my only option. Even though I will run into many other crossroads and challenges on my current path, I feel the way I am put together I can overcome anything that comes my
“It always seems impossible until it’s done”. This quote from Nelson Mandela comes to mind when describing why I aspire to become a Physician Assistant. It has always been a great motivation and inspired me not to get discouraged with failure; rather look forward for your goals. Frequently, it takes many trials and lack of success as well as achievements, for one to truthfully discover him/herself. I instinctively progressed through the motions of life. Many options were available and choosing a career as I grew up kept altering, until one day when I saw how helping other people is my sole purpose of life. Getting to know more of physician assistant drove me into the thoughts of pursuing it as a career.
Overcoming perfectionism requires a fundamental shift in your attitude toward yourself and how you approach life in general. The following seven guidelines are intended as a starting point for making such a shift.
In addition to improving my study habits; Dr. Cannons rule of "Practicing Perfectionism" is something that I keenly struggle with. For me practicing perfectionism causes me to constantly struggle with the need to overachieve academically. In my eyes, anything lower than a "B" is failing. And when I achieve anything of lesser value I feel frustrated and anxious. When discussing this rule in How to Flunk out of College, Dr. Cannon describes how always trying to overachieve can cause a
I began my college career unsure of the path ahead of me. I knew I had a passion for medicine, however, I did not know which direction I would take. With the expansive amount of options offered within the fields of science and medicine, it was difficult to narrow down exactly what direction I wanted to take. I gained some clarity the summer of my sophomore year when I stayed at a close friend’s home, whose father, a practicing Medical Physician, became somewhat of a mentor to me. The passionate way in which he discussed the practice of medicine led me to develop an interest in pursuing a career as a physician. He explained that a career in the medical field was about responsibility, the responsibility to work with all members of the healthcare team for the well-being of the patient as well as their family
My transition to college was successful, but it was nonetheless one of the most stressful times in my life. Unlike many of my peers at Saint Louis University, my rural high school experience did not truly prepare me for the academic rigors of college. Despite extensive preparation, I performed rather poorly on the first round of exams. While I didn’t fail any particular exam, my performance was seriously lacking. I knew that getting C’s on exams would not serve me well in the pursuit of my dream of becoming a physician. I remember feeling, for the first time in my life, that I was unintelligent and incompetent. I was also heavily fatigued from the excessive hours of studying, which I felt were necessary to reconcile the problem. I managed to
While looking over my transcripts, I observed that my grades for the most part either remained bad or got worse second semester. Despite how I perform in those classes I have the easiest time understanding math, and the hardest time with history. The trends in my transcript correlate to how I’ve been my entire life, I give up easily. Once the smallest thing goes wrong I give up rather than trying persevering. I choose to keep rolling down a hill because it's easier, rather than to push myself to climb it.
It has become common today to dismiss the fact that there are few women in the STEM careers today. Why are not young women choosing to pursue careers in math and science? Throughout elementary, middle, and high school, boys and girls were in the same math and science courses. Once they begin college and can choose their own course study, they tend to shy away from STEM careers. Going into college, young women still want to do STEM studies and careers, but when graduation comes around, there are more men with STEM degrees when compared to women. Due to societal norms for young girls and it historically being male dominated field, as women they are not choosing careers in math and science. Society frames a picture on how women and men are supposed to choose careers for their lives. Young women themselves choose not to go into STEM because society is typically stereotyping men into these fields instead of women.
My research on the dangers of perfectionist thinking in academic endeavors revealed that there are two distinct types of perfectionist thinking, adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism. Those with maladaptive perfectionism will have unrealistic expectations of themselves and react to situations of failure by putting off papers and essays further. The procrastination associated with maladaptive perfectionism is present in groups varying from graduate students to high achieving professionals. Those with a high level of perfectionism may also think of themselves in a negative light. In short, perfectionism can often be thought of as a tempting path to follow, but in reality perfectionism can lead down a road of misery and procrastination that can prevent students from achieving success.
Many people fail to realise the importance of our economy, how diverse and interactive it is to our daily lives and the distinct role it plays in our constantly evolving economic climate. My initial interest stemmed from my lack of knowledge about the UK economy; resulting in the research about our recent financial crisis and from there it grew tenfold. I began to observe the situations around me from a different perspective, and with the help of micro and macroeconomic objectives, which are the fundamental foundations; I have been able to pursue this social science in far greater depth and understanding. It is a growing ambition of mine to explore what effect daily transactions and the conduct of millions of people like me has on our future in a domestic and global aspect. Further developing my study of economics will ensure I am able to explore such views to a higher level.
Up until high school I had the mindset that a lot of my achievements would be handed to me. During my four years of high school tennis I had many ups and downs. The outcome each day was not consistent and it seemed as if I was on the rollercoaster of emotions. Whenever I would lose, I immediately felt ashamed and disappointed in myself. Eventually I realized that thinking negatively wasn’t going to improve anything. If I wanted to be successful, I would need to try harder during practice and put more energy into improving. Like in sports, people need to try their hardest when it comes to their careers. I have learned that it will be my responsibility in the medical field to continually put forth effort. Even if I am having a bad day, I still need to focus on the task at hand and do it to the best of my
I realize my lifetime goal is a little farfetched, seeing as how competitive the medical field is. I’m aware many people have failed in this endeavor, and it is very rarely achieved; however, based on the community service hours and extracurricular activities I have involved myself in, I feel my chances at succeeding are just as good as any. Becoming a doctor will be stressful and time taking (after all, it is a lifetime goal), but the reward at the end will be gratifying.
Lower down your standards. Are you a perfectionist? If you are, then learn how to lower down your standards, accept mistakes, and go for accomplishments like “good enough.”