You Must Depend Only on Yourself

Depending on Yourself

Have you ever been told something by somebody, acted upon what you were told, then found out what they told you was wrong? This just goes to show that you should never rely on anybody else's word. I have always been told that attitute is everything. If you want to do accomplish something, your attitute towards your goal is the most important factor in your success. However, my personal experiences say otherwise. In seventh grade P.E. class, I had taken up the attitute that P.E. is a waste of time, and was not motivated to actively exert effort in the class. This kept up throughout the year, and my grade at the end was a "B". The next year, I decided I had better change my ways. I made sure to show enthusiasm and effort throughout the year. My final grade this time? Still a "B". This has forever disheartened me from trying to get an A in P.E., since it seems that nothing you do can change your grade. Even if you change your attitute, the result can be the same.

The necessity of self-reliance becomes more and more apparent if you start to search for examples. For instance, several of my friends had a certain teacher for a physics class, who was often wrong in his teachings, but unwilling to admit to his mistakes. They had to compare what he had taught them with information in other places, to make sure he wasn't teaching the lessons incorrectly. Due to his mistakes, they had to rely on themselves, not the word of the teacher. My parents always tell me that if I don't want homework to be such a chore, that I have to motivate myself. I took their advice with an open mind, and got myself motivated for a history essay. But when the time came to write it, it was just as bad as any other.