Some Advice On Perseverance

[ATeutonicKnight]

I’m turning seventeen this year and I’ll be a Junior (My birthday is in October, so I wasn’t held back or anything like that). I’ve been homeschooled all my life and I’m studying for the ACT’s and getting prepared to go to college in the Fall of 2015. I naturally get good grades without trying a lot and people tell me I’m pretty smart, but the thing is, being homeschooled means I need more perseverance in order to do school. This is problematic because I’m a total sanguine, and sanguines have a tough time with perseverance. I want to go to college and have a good career, but sometimes it’s so hard to motivate myself. What are some good ways to motivate myself? I’m praying and asking God and the Saints to help me with school and to get outstanding grades (I’m not settling for anything less than a composite score of 25 on the ACT’s, but that’s a minimum, not what I’m aiming for), and I’m going to ask my best friend to start checking in on my school progress and to ask me if I’ve been doing school. She’s a really good friend and it would make me feel awful if I disappointed her by not doing school, so this in itself should be really effective, but are there other things I should be doing as well?

 

[Peggy_in_Burien]

My son was homeschooled as well, and seems to have a personality much akin to your description of your own, Knight. While he was in Catholic high school (his father insisted), even being with other students didn’t seem to inspire him to work hard.

However, once he started college, he finally discovered what it was that turned him on: computer aided graphics and computer designs. I am amazed, and proud, of how hard he works and studies, and what good grades he gets. He was just accepted by Eastern Washington University for the fall, and he’s raring to go.

I’m sure that you will find the thing that really turns you on, and you will be motivated by love of the subject. You will amaze yourself. Just keep on, and don’t give up on yourself, Knight.

I think you have a good idea about having a friend to check in with to keep you on track.

 

[MJJean]

My best advice is to “just keep swimming”. Do the work, do it well, and look for the thing that you are passionate about. Once you find what you are passionate about, think of how to spin that into a degree and a career that you’ll love and the work involved will be a lot more enjoyable. Constantly remind yourself that even if you aren’t fond of assignments and even if they feel redundant, boring, useless, etc. those assignments are a necessary evil so that you can be qualified to do that thing you are passionate about.

 

[mikecash]

I recommend putting a broad plan together first thing based on your major, what you want to take and when. (Don’t be afraid to change your mind. Some may disagree, but I saw many of my friends get off track because they didn’t go through college with a plan.) Then, just take it one semester and one class at a time. Go to class, do the reading and homework, get to know your professors (so important), study, and you will be fine! I coasted through high school to the dismay of my parents… When I got to college, I felt like you and realized that I needed to do well to get a job. That was powerful motivation!

If you go to a large school, you will be so shocked at the percentage of your freshman class who don’t take school seriously. Just by working hard, you will already be ahead of the game. I was very scared when I started college and law school that I wouldn’t be able to cut it! Both times, I realized that my anxiety was completely baseless!

Most importantly, take time to make good friends in college. For most people, college friends are ones that you keep for the rest of your life!

 

[ATeutonicKnight]

My son was homeschooled as well, and seems to have a personality much akin to your description of your own, Knight. While he was in Catholic high school (his father insisted), even being with other students didn’t seem to inspire him to work hard.

However, once he started college, he finally discovered what it was that turned him on: computer aided graphics and computer designs. I am amazed, and proud, of how hard he works and studies, and what good grades he gets. He was just accepted by Eastern Washington University for the fall, and he’s raring to go.

I’m sure that you will find the thing that really turns you on, and you will be motivated by love of the subject. You will amaze yourself. Just keep on, and don’t give up on yourself, Knight.

I think you have a good idea about having a friend to check in with to keep you on track.

I recommend putting a broad plan together first thing based on your major, what you want to take and when. (Don’t be afraid to change your mind. Some may disagree, but I saw many of my friends get off track because they didn’t go through college with a plan.) Then, just take it one semester and one class at a time. Go to class, do the reading and homework, get to know your professors (so important), study, and you will be fine! I coasted through high school to the dismay of my parents… When I got to college, I felt like you and realized that I needed to do well to get a job. That was powerful motivation!

If you go to a large school, you will be so shocked at the percentage of your freshman class who don’t take school seriously. Just by working hard, you will already be ahead of the game. I was very scared when I started college and law school that I wouldn’t be able to cut it! Both times, I realized that my anxiety was completely baseless!

Most importantly, take time to make good friends in college. For most people, college friends are ones that you keep for the rest of your life!

Thank you both for the great advice! I’ve actually been thinking of my major for years now (I was shocked to learn this is a rare thing, but I’ve always been one to think ahead), and I’m seriously considering civil engineering. It’s not generally a thing you would have sanguines do, but the jobs sanguines are naturally good at don’t typically pay well. I guess I’ll just bother the guys at the office all day by talking so compensate for it.

As for friends, I’m going to Benedictine College, and the whole campus is full of really amazing people. On top of that, the best friend I mentioned in my first post is going to Benedictine, too, and at the same exact time as me.

 

[DOJ96]

As a Georgia Tech grad, I can tell you that Civil Engineering is an awesome field. I know several, and they know the most interesting things.

I’m definitely NOT a sanguine, so I don’t know if this will help but what about setting several small goals to accomplish? Something like study x every Tuesday for a month. That’s probably way too choleric/melancholic, right?

At any rate, I pray you find the right balance.

 

[ATeutonicKnight]

As a Georgia Tech grad, I can tell you that Civil Engineering is an awesome field. I know several, and they know the most interesting things.

I’m definitely NOT a sanguine, so I don’t know if this will help but what about setting several small goals to accomplish? Something like study x every Tuesday for a month. That’s probably way too choleric/melancholic, right?

At any rate, I pray you find the right balance.

I’m actually going to get a math tutor to help me get really advanced in math. I’m not bad at math, I just can’t read it on paper and figure out what it’s saying. I’m a hands-on learner, and I need someone to tell me what to do step-by-step. Hopefully that will help me get on track and get me to start practicing math skills regularly, if nothing else will.