. . . but that I do not generally say because I don't want to sound like a level 75 curmudgeon:
You cannot continue to expect to get gold stars just for showing up. Certainly, showing up is the first step, but it's only a first step. You may have been stroked and petted for doing the absolute minimum up until this point, but from now on the minimum is just that--it will keep you from utter failure, but that's about it. If you want to know true success, then you are going to have to determine that deferred gratification and mental/physical exhaustion are acceptable. Especially the deferred gratification part. You are also going to have to define success in terms other than monetarily. If you think you are in college to get certified for a job, you'd be better off doing other stuff. There is no reason to be at a university unless you are there to learn things in a broad and deep sense. Please learn, furthermore, that you are in fact always representing yourself to other people, both in what you wear and in how you choose to speak. You may mutter self-indulgent nonsense about "authenticity" and "self-expression," but you're not really convincing anyone--least of all anyone over the age of 30. And PLEASE, PLEASE, for the love of Pete, think before opening your mouth. In fact, just play it safe and don't open your mouth at all.
1 comment:
and why can't you tell your students this? Maybe they will ready this blog and they will get it. As I was reminded today, it's not what you do, it's how you do it. And, sadly, lots of us don't do things to the best of our ability. We expect the bare minimum of others and that is exactly what we get. We should raise our expectations -- of ourselves and others.
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