Why put a limit on gratitude? One day each year we're told by the calendar to feel grateful. But this shortchanges what gratitude can do for you, if you practice it beyond the national holiday. In short, gratitude gives everything in your life an upgrade. It makes you a bad-ass in the face of set-backs; It makes you not an ass in the face of great good fortune. And you can make it part of your daily routine, if you're hoping to live a rich existence. And of course we're going to say it has benefits for your college essay (it really does) and your appeal to admissions officers (positivity is attractive). But that is just the beginning of how this feeling and virtue can alter your perspective and prospects for the better. Gratitude's brag sheet Gratitude opens you to what is, rather than what isn't. Gratitude allows you to appreciate, rather than depreciate, your life as it is. Gratitude is anti-consumerism-- it doesn't need more, it always has enough. Gratitude is knowing even the chance to apply to college, the know-how to get through even the simplest application, spells opportunity and privilege. Compare this with the education models available elsewhere in the world and you'll resent the effort a little less. Gratitude is simple-- you can exercise is towards anything. You can be grateful you can read these words, breathe, drink water, pee...no, really, the list never runs out. It's actually inexhaustible. Gratitude gives you a second chance when there is a shit-storm. When things don't go "your way." When you-- if you-- get rejected. When you-- if you---get accepted. Gratitude gains you positivity The chain works like this: Gratitude induces positive feelings where more are needed or where there aren't any. Positive feelings set your nervous system at ease. Positive feelings lower baseline stress. A nervous system at ease is solution-oriented. A nervous system at ease believes things can or will be OK. There is science to Continue Reading …
Practice
In your college essay, include the present
There's more to the story of You Sometimes, you can get so focused on "telling your story" in your college essay that you forget to include a strong portrait of the current you, your present self, with your present aspirations. So don't be surprised when we pitch "meditation"; it's the amp to your music, optimizing everything you do and bringing out your best, now. Which is exactly what you want to show schools. Take a big breath. Who's breathing? Sounds like a ridiculous question, yup. But-- it's You. Yes, YOU! This you is the person colleges are saying YES to. The one they want to meet and to know. When colleges accept you, they are banking on your future, not your past. Right now is the path to the future What you are doing with your time, energy, and enthusiasm right now is a better predictor of what you will be doing in one, two, or ten years (when your alma mater can brag that you are its graduate) than any story you might tell. Why? Because it's what all that story stuff has led to, the young adult person choosing a direction (or many) in the world. So your core stories are still key, are still your power vehicle for showing your strongest personal qualities and what has shaped you...but don't drop the potato there. In your essay, point toward the future, and be real What are you up to right now? What matters to you, what are you committed to, what are your short and long terms aspiration? (We all know those can change: that's fine.) These questions help you define your present and point towards your future. Plus, it's great for self-knowledge Asking these question leads to greater self-knowledge-- something colleges look for in applicants. But it's not a service you can pay someone else for, Kaplan doesn't have bubble sheets to help you get there; it's DIY, develop-it-yourself, through introspection, and it's a premium quality of good leaders. Not sure how to get started on self-knowledge quest? We recommend basic meditation, Continue Reading …
First line, first impression
Your first sentence of your essay decides if you have a future... That is, if your college essay has a future in the eyes of your reader. There, got your attention. See? First impressions matter. Your college essay is no exception. And your first line of your personal statement is your first impression, so here's how to make it good and have the adcom begging (well, maybe not begging, but ready) for more. Consider Context You wouldn't go for a job interview with tomato sauce rubbed across your face, go on a first date in a stained shirt, show up for the first day of school with a busted notebook from last year. Don't start your essay without thoughtful craft-- you want it to entice. In fact, make that first line work for you so you have the best chance at getting the prize-- that is, the adcom's attention. Figure out the techniques Here's Stanford University's sample first lines from admitted students. If you take a few minutes to study each first line, you'll see that A) there is a range of winners and B) there is no formula and C) each line has a reason it's successful. We'll look at a few different ones to give you a primer on why they work. First Lines of college essays we love "I change my name each time I place an order at Starbucks." First, clever, and why not, do you have an obligation to be you? Second, the reader is given a fact, but no explanation for it: perhaps the writer likes the freedom to swap out identities in low-stakes situation; perhaps the applicant hates his or her first name; perhaps something traumatizing happened with a Starbucks employee -- point is, we have just enough information to be intrigued, but not enough to be satisfied. Simple sentence, but big opening. "When I was in eighth grade I couldn't read." Again, simple fact, but begs the biggest question: Why? (Especially, perhaps, because we know this student was submitted to Stanford at least partially on the strength of the essay). "On a hot Hollywood evening, Continue Reading …
Procrastination got your college essay? Try this!
Is your college essay due this weekend, or next week, and you've been procrastinating epically? Here's how to beat the procrastination paralysis and crank out a college essay by deadline. Note & Plug! The photo featured above shows gung-ho participants in a customized Essay Intensive college essay writing workshop, Just Write, at The TEAK Fellowship. They beat procrastination, just like you will, and punched out some quality personal essays! So, speaking of-- back to you. The moment is Now It's beyond crunch-time. You're panicking that you don't have time (because you screwed yourself) to be all that you need to be in your college admissions essay: insightful, creative, authentic, reflective, and thoughtful. (You're wrong-- keep reading). You're seriously considering writing your college essay on your dog's midlife crisis as you watch him limp after spastic squirrels. And ending it with a line about the pointlessness of striving in this world. Think again. Let your dog have his own crisis. Seize your loaded moment for what it's worth, and use our tips to write. Continue Reading …
Help, I can’t focus on my college essay!
Why Can't I Focus? Heat's on, application season is coming in like a tidal wave, and you can't focus on your essays. In fact, facing your essays is like facing yourself in the mirror with a bad haircut-- you'd rather look in any other direction. Yet it's practically a commandment: To write requires focus. To write something as important as your college essay requires focus on yourself, the most elusive subject of them all. And it can make you feel like you have an irredeemably bad haircut. Crap! What are you to do? The more you try to focus, the less you can, like trying to untangle a thin chain. And the more you tell yourself you just need to read or do one more thing before you get down to business, the less likely it is the writing is going to happen. Why are we wired this way? Can we do anything about it? Continue Reading …
There’s more Inside! Your gutsy college essay…
Gut Feelings What’s more New York than a Deli with a botanical name pushing questionable health foods? Well, courtesy of my local deli comes a lesson in writing an authentic and gutsy college essay. In the GARDEN DELI window, a sign reads, “Fresh food all day.” The rub? The poster advertises the least fresh-looking food conceivable. Who you going to trust? It challenges famously. My words or your own (lying) eyes? Some delights cannot be feigned. Writer, take note. Continue Reading …