“Everything I have done in my life has been to provide for my children.” That’s what you’ll hear my dad say if you ask him about anything he’s accomplished in his life. He is a very proud and hardworking man. Even now, at 60 years old, he works harder than most 20-year-olds do. As a father he has always told us, “Nothing is handed to you; everything you have must be earned.”…
For the most part, society’s outlook on a successful person is who has the most wealth or has the most valuable items, although for some people that is not the case. Joleen Cortez, radiology technician and loving mother of three children, is successful not because she’s obtained a decent amount of wealth but because she has an unbreakable relationship with her family. When asked whether she sees herself as successful, Joleen Cortez relied, “ Having a good relationship with my family but more importantly having the means to support my family while always striding to do better”. Obviously, Cortez’s view of success is being able to maintaining an everlasting relationship with her family and giving them the best opportunity for them to be successful…
In today’s society, we as Americans of the United States—the younger generations—often well-overlook the struggles of our parents, grandparents, and so on. The United States of America is globally referred to as the land of opportunity. The reason why we take for granted the fact that we are very fortunate as to being provided with an education and if you are a member of the middle-class society, everything in life might seem very great and easy for you—maybe too easy. Despite the struggles one may grow up with though, however difficult or unforgivable as they may seem, everyone should rest assured so that they can have the ability to believe in themselves and persevere towards your purpose in life, because anything may be accomplished…
From a very young age, Liz has had so many responsibilities. Not that she always did what was required of her, but just the fact that she had so many responsibilities as a young child. Her parents relied on her for so much. Among other tasks, she cleaned up after her mother (Murray 164), helped her father sneak out of the house (Murray 53). She was also responsible for getting herself to school because neither of her parents knew that she was not going and really were just indifferent. Although she was responsible for it, she never based her actions on that responsibility. Nonetheless, Liz had a lot of responsibility thrust upon her at a really young age. On the other hand, I have never really been responsible for much more than my school work, which may have come from the huge emphasis that my parents put on academics. My parents took care of me; they fed me, took me to school, and pretty much did anything that was needed for me. I never had to worry about anything, except for school work. These different levels of responsibility have caused Liz and I’s lives to manifest themselves differently. When Liz finally took charge her responsibility for school, she was able to handle it fairly easily because she was so used to handling different kinds of responsibility. When I finally was forced to be independent in coming to college, I had to make some adjustments because I had to accept responsibilities that I never had to worry about at home. Liz’s excessive amount of responsibility prepared her for the life that she is living now while my lack of responsibility at home required a significant lifestyle change. In this case, Liz is motivated to be responsible for her life because she has always been responsible for it. On the other hand, I am motivated to be responsible to show that I can be, but I have to work at it because of my…
Ever since my parents’ divorce my dad has always told me to be independent and to achieve everything on my own so no one could have the satisfaction of saying they’re the reason for my accomplishments. His words have been a reason behind my motivation for as long as I could remember. Growing up my family has always told me that you receive the effort you put into achieving something and if failed I was encouraged to try again. Like in “Brainology”, an article that compares two groups of mindsets-Fixed mindset and Growth mindset, Dweck argues that motivation, performance and confidence are results of being praised for effort rather than for intelligence (Dweck 4).…
It is possible to be born into a successful family, but it is not possible to be born successful. The responsibility of being successful falls greatly upon me as an individual. While others can give an opinion, theory, or share their beliefs it is ultimately up to me to make my own decisions. At most I can adopt someone’s beliefs, I can imitate their actions, or even mimic their behaviors, but no one else is responsible for what happens in my life. It is up to me to put forth the hard work and dedication to reach the level of success that I desire. It is my personal responsibility to choose the path for my life and I choose success.…
I can still hear the echo of my mother’s voice when I told her I was leaving my job to go back to school full time. In her loving demeanor and ever so softly toned voice, she said, “If you would have focused on education instead of your social status back then, you would be a doctor by now.” I could not believe my ears! However, I knew exactly what my mother meant and sadly responded with, “you are right mother.” I was twenty seven, a mother of two, and about to sacrifice so much for higher education. This was not going to be easy but I was determine to do it for myself and my family. In the past, my parents stressed the importance of education and did all they could to support us through it. However, my priority as a teen was my appearance.…
My mother has been through many hardships and she informs me and my brother that life is difficult and things will not be given to us. But we have to work hard to earn what we want in life, in order to succeed. She continues to tell us that life is what we make it but it will not be an easy journey. My mother informs me that we will go through a bumpy road that will lead to sharpness and discomfort obstacles. As of today my mother continues to teach me to be an independent young adult. And if I want to be able to afford the things that I want I have to strive to be successful and never look back.…
My father is a Sicilian combat veteran from Brooklyn and my mother is an immigrant from El Salvador. The disparity of their backgrounds is immeasurable, but their lives have impacted me greatly. They divorced when I was 3, but their relationship is unbelievably strong. I lived in a diverse environment, speaking different languages and existing in polar opposite lifestyles. The dichotomy molded me and influenced my character, perspective and state of being. Under my father’s roof, I endured a military-style upbringing-but the love was apparent. I was encouraged to play sports and excel in my academics. I am competitive in nature, and exceeding was always my aspiration. However certain events have caused me to falter, but I now understand that the duty of each human is to delegate their time for the advancement of the species and if no one holds you responsible, it is imperative that you do so.…
Fortunately, by the fifth grade my parents were able to rent an apartment nearby our school and had found jobs in multiple Brownsville restaurants. After the move, things became much easier and we were able to have a much simpler life, though we were never able to forget the hardships we experienced and the effort we put into enhancing our lives. Today, I am sure my successes as of now are gratifying my parents as I am in the top 10% of my class, the Co-Captain of the Golden Stars Dance Team, member of the National Honor Society, Piano Club, HOSA, and in TRIO UTRGV talent search program. I attend rigorous AP classes to improve my opportunity to attend a university and have the finest future I can give myself. Although my triumphs may not look like much to most, I can assertively say that the trial of going through difficulty to have a superior future has been overcome with the comfort of focus, strength, and the right set of mind to build a better tomorrow for my family and…
Growing up I thought that our humble and modest life style was a normal life. However, it was in junior high school that I was rudely awakened to a cruel reality; my classmates made fun of me. I was the ugly duckling always sporting last season’s hand-me-downs. I seldom had money for class field trips and when I did attend a trip I had no spending money like everyone else seemed to have. At the end of the day, however, having money and things didn’t matter to me. Mother managed to keep us together and that’s what mattered most. I will always remember my mothers words; “don’t ever let anyone tell you what you can or can’t do, if you have a dream follow it until you fulfill it,” she said.…
“The Achievement Habit” (Roth, Bernard) clearly spells out the true meaning of hard work, taking success to the very highest level, and finding the “Yellow Eyed Cats” (Roth) that can ruin a person’s perspective on the outside world for the rest of his life. “Who Am I? What do I Want? What is my purpose?” (Roth, 28). What is a “GOOOooood Reason” (Roth 34) for a poor excuse, and what really matters in your life?…
In the summer of 2010, my mother became a single parent to my older brother and me. My mom and dad had filed for a divorce in the previous months and it was finalized in June. This was a tough time for me, but I knew I had to push forward to succeed. Living with my mother after the divorce, I felt that I had to excel because I wanted to bring something positive to my divorced family. My mother worked extremely hard for months, after the change to try and get our lives back to a state of stability. I remember her drive to make life better at home and it only challenged me to do the same thing. I wanted to help my mother get through such a hard time, and that’s what made me determined to excel every day. The impact she placed in my heart, the love she has for me and the memory of those hard times will never escape my mind.…
Reflecting on my 17 years of life gives me a since of accomplishment on what I’ve become in these past years. Even though I wasn’t the kid on the block with the best outfit or cleanest shoes, I always knew I was very fortunate as a child. My mother has always been there for me and she’s loved me in a way no one else could, as for my father, he has been a huge support as far sports, and someone to get advice from. I realized that the people I’ve surrounded myself by play a big role in the decisions I make as a teenager; they will help me reach my goals and in the long run make my dreams come true. My dream in life is to be the best I can be to make myself and my mother proud of my success and accomplishments. I’ve made it to my senior year in high school, the quote I live by that bests fits me is “If you don’t want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe then you won’t be successful.” This quote will keep me going through any road blocks that I will face in life to keep myself focused to achieve my goals a strive for greatness.…
I honestly cannot imagine living in a house, in a society where I have not been encouraged to be the best in all things I do. I honestly cannot imagine my mother helping me with my homework, my father getting me a tutor in maths. I honestly cannot imagine my family constantly telling me to work hard for what I want. I honestly cannot imagine being encouraged to be the best in all things I do. Unfortunately, not everyone is encouraged to achieve what might be deemed as impossible. Not everyone is supported to be the best they can. I could summarise my next few sentence but why don't we read the lyrics provided by Beyoncé in Pretty Hurts "You're a pretty girl.…