QCQ 10

Quote: Put Duckworth’s findings together with the discoveries in crossing the Finish Line, and you reach a rather remarkable conclusion: whether or not a student is able to graduate from a decent American college doesn’t necessarily have all that much to do with how smart he or she is. It has to do, instead, with that same list of character strengths that produce high GPAs in middle school and high school.

Comment: Throughout my high school career the discussion about the accuracy of SAT and ACT scores to asses students as a whole has been very apparent. For a while I had no clue as to my position on this matter, that is, until I had actually completed all my college applications and tests. In my experience and after reading this quote, I realize that it makes sense for students who typically have strong grades in high school to be more successful in there future careers. This is because these students generally have a disposition that many people lack: Determination. For these students, success is within their grasp, for they know that if they put in the work they will succeed. This simple mindset is the difference between failure and success.

Question: Would it be more effective to gain this characteristic on your own or be born with these traits?

QCQ 9

Quote: Each summer about twelve hundred young American men and women arrive at the United States Military Academy at West Point to begin four years of study and to take their place in the fabled “long gray line.” But before any of them sees a classroom they go through seven weeks of Cadet Basic Training—otherwise known as “Beast Barracks.” By the time the summer ends, one in twenty of these talented dedicated young adults has dropped out…The experience of these army officers-in-training confirms the second law of mastery. Mastery is a pain.

Comment: I chose this quote for two reasons, one because it relates to the situation I will be in at the Naval Academy, and two because it provides an excellent moral. As stated, “mastery is a pain” reading this I immediately thought of the old phrase, “no pain no gain”, which made me realize that becoming a “master” at practically anything will be difficult, hence the word “pain” in both these quotes. Adding on to my previous posts about mindset, I would like to point out that whenever we want to get better at something we have to acknowledge that it will take work; a lot of strenuous, long, and time consuming work. Once we have identified and accepted this challenge, then and only then will we have the drive to actually become better at something.

Question: Can everyone be a master at anything with the sufficient amount of work?