Learning to Believe

Writing about yourself isn’t easy. Knowing yourself deeply enough to write to the entire school really isn’t easy. To write it in limited words is even harder. But here I am, attempting. Jefferson Academy has been an interesting experience for me, no doubt. I have grown enormously throughout these years. Freshman year, I had zero confidence, zero motivation, and only anxiety. This year, I have much more confidence, a depleting source of motivation, and significantly less anxiety. I have met people I love, and people I don’t, but that is the nature of life.

Through the friends I have met and the teachers who have mentored me, I have become more confident. “Confidence is key.” You hear that all the time, but you don’t understand the validity of the statement until you have gone from afraid to assured. Something I have learned while being at Jefferson Academy is that fewer people want to harm you than try to befriend you — the loudest voices tend to be the harshest.

Despite this being my senior year and a quickly draining motivation, my years in high school have shown me how to acquire motivation. Motivation is a fluid idea — it isn’t tangible or measurable. It is something that ebbs and flows, and through my years, I have figured out that in order to maintain motivation, you need to treat yourself as needed — not too much, not too little. But on top of that, you must maintain a work ethic. Regardless, this all becomes completely irrelevant in your senior year (trust me).

I won’t delve too deeply into my anxiety, but man, has it improved. Once, I could barely speak to others. Now, I have developed a more comfortable level with talking to others. Anxiety is hard — we all experience it, though on different levels.

In the end, you must believe in yourself. It is hard to learn, but believing in yourself and in others is the key to success. And what is success? To me, it’s happiness.