{"id":18983,"date":"2013-11-20T14:13:50","date_gmt":"2013-11-20T19:13:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/?p=18983"},"modified":"2013-11-20T14:13:50","modified_gmt":"2013-11-20T19:13:50","slug":"in-which-we-discuss-the-pressure-to-perform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/2013\/11\/20\/in-which-we-discuss-the-pressure-to-perform\/","title":{"rendered":"in which we discuss the pressure to perform"},"content":{"rendered":"As an English student, essay season always finds me suffering from stomach discomfort.\r\n\r\nThere is the sinking panic right before I hand in an essay,\r\nand the\u00a0queasy nausea\u00a0right before I get back an essay.\r\n\r\nI\u2019m pretty sure we all know these sensations too well.\r\nThe fear of not having met the number grade expectations you've set for yourself, or bureaucratically required of you...\r\n\r\nThe university environment can be tough. We are all familiar with the study grind, the seemingly lost cause of staying on top of our work, and the collective experience of late nights and cram sessions at various locations all over campus. Coupled with the anxiety that peaks every time midterms or essays or finals come around, it is remarkably easy to lose motivation and interest in the learning we have come for.\r\n\r\nIn a setting where achievement is so heavily emphasized, how are we to deal with the pressure to perform?\r\n\r\nFirstly, remember that a GPA is not an indicator of your abilities.<\/strong>\r\n\r\n\"IMG_8962\"<\/a>\r\n

deep truth we should all internalize.<\/em><\/p>\r\nWe each possess a different combination of skills and talents, and these are not all quantifiable in the same way.Extra-curricular involvement showed me a whole set of skills I did not know I possessed that marks would not have highlighted.\r\n\r\nRecognize your strengths and your weaknesses.\r\nA\u00a0healthy dose of self-knowledge helps combat the self-doubt in times of high pressure.<\/b><\/span>\r\n\r\nPractically speaking though\u2026our GPAs do impact us in school.\r\nSo what then?\u00a0<\/b>\r\n\r\nKeep sight of your greater trajectory of learning.<\/strong>\r\n\r\n\"IMG_8965\"<\/a>\r\n

the stairway of learning....sometimes takes me back into bed.<\/em><\/p>\r\nLearning takes time. Learning takes effort. Learning takes practice.\r\nBuilding on past effort is much more important and practical than any isolated attempt at success.\r\n\r\nEvery year, my only game plan is to raise my marks per essay, per class with each try. If I successfully do that, I've learned a little more.\u00a0I read the comments of each essay I get back, take note of what is being critiqued, and carry that with me into all the other essays I write after that.\r\nEach class requires slight adjustments, and so does each term, each year.\r\n\r\nTaking a more holistic look at your overall academic achievement helps you be more pragmatic and clear about setting personal goals.\r\n\r\nSet those goals.<\/strong>\r\n

\"IMG_8963\"\r\n<\/a><\/p>\r\n

start simple. don't be too ambitious.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n