Can You Determine Your Success? School, homework, sleep, repeat- all high schoolers religiously follow this cycle. However, in many affluent communities, high achieving students not only strive for success, but for educational and occupational excellence. According to Suniya S. Luthar Ph.D., over one in five girls experience serious depression as a result of educational pressures to succeed. Additionally, in 1967, 86% of college freshmen rated "developing a meaningful philosophy of life" as an essential life goal; in 2004, only 42% of freshmen agreed with them (Tillman). The stark difference in the values of today’s students compared to other generations signifies an increased focus on monetary and occupational gains, consequently increasing stress levels of teenagers. Thus, pressure inhibits happiness, leading many question what determines personal success. Many stressed high schoolers contend that pressure, often due to overbearing expectations, motivates a large majority of their academic triumphs; however, these high demands can also lead to serious levels of depression, anxiety, or somatic symptoms in affluent students (Luthar). Moreover, students constantly gauge where they stand relative to others in the intense competition for distinction, creating hostile environments with unrealistic expectations. Much of the time, successful parents demand certain achievements of their children, maintaining the mindset that any ordinary ”’education is not a tangible something’” (NYU).
Instead, they expect their children to attend and prevail at universities like Harvard, Princeton, and Yale, mistaking prestige for quality of education. Thus, parents who pour money into their children’s success inherently expect some level of excellence in return; high expectations produce higher stress for the student, which, in turn, clouds their teen’s perception of their achievements. This also increases one’s willingness to take career choice advice (Tillman). Because of this vulnerability, parents can easily twist their child’s future goals in their favor, altering the student’s idea of success and inhibiting them from finding happiness with their education. Although numerous factors impact intrinsic views of success, parents generally expect their kids to exceed their current quality of life; thus, parental pressures to succeed affect students of all backgrounds. To counter this, impressionable teenagers of high academic ranking must discover what makes them successful without harming their mental stability. According to researchers from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, by maintaining high levels of emotional vitality, optimism, and self-regulation, risks of chronic diseases greatly decrease (Rimer). Additionally, having a healthy support system decreases premature chronic stress levels and depressive symptoms significantly. This tranquil state of mind subsequently leads to increased success, for passion and complacency incite engagement. By changing your focus to something you love, overall performance can increase by four times, demonstrating the dangers of choosing a career based on influence or outside information (Newman). Conclusively, by eliminating sources of external pressure, students can develop their own definitions of success, maximizing their personal happiness and their productivity. After all, if they find true happiness and eventual success, shouldn’t parents become proud?
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The Imitation Game
The Lion King The Lion King presents the story of a lion cub's journey to understanding his inherent role as King. Simba, the young lion cub, deals with tragedy, greed, love, and fate, all while learning to accept his past. Through the masterful storytelling of the Disney classic, viewers of all ages can learn valuable life lessons from this film. For instance, Scar, a horribly greedy and manipulative adult figure, illustrates that age does not always indicate trustworthiness and honor, encouraging audiences to remain skeptical. Additionally, Simba’s obvious guilt after his father’s death follows him for years, and his ascension to the throne asserts that rather than dwell on the past, one must adapt and learn for the future of both oneself and those surrounding you. Similarly, the iteration of “Hakuna Matata” itself illustrates the importance of leading a stress-free life; worrying has no constructive value, and one must remain level headed regarding decisions of importance. Lastly, one of the most valuable lessons one can gather remains that a desire for success can blind people, for the glory of power and wealth often overrides one’s happiness. Given all of these values, Simba achieves his destiny while demonstrating skills necessary to compete and succeed in life, illustrating the importance of kindness, compassion, and dedication.
In the 2014 production of The Imitation Game, the British intelligence agency MI6 recruits Cambridge mathematician Alan Turing to crack the codes sent by the Nazi’s Enigma machine, which many had previously considered unbreakable. Turing's team, including Joan Clarke, the only female English cryptanalyst to work with Turing, spent years analyzing Enigma messages at Bletchley Park, while Turing tries to build a machine to decipher the Nazi codes. Despite his contributions as a war hero, the British government keeps the extent of his role in deciphering the Nazi Enigma code a secret for numerous years. According to historians, his contributions saved 14 million lives, further characterizing him as a hero. Though they eventually succeed and rise as national heroes, the British government disgraces his legacy by arresting him for his homosexual lifestyle, sending him to prison in 1952. The controversy over his homosexuality leaves viewers appalled at the treatment of Turning, for the authorities neglect his prior aid and label him a despicable criminal. Particularly, I really enjoyed the casting for this movie; Benedict Cumberbatch's unique ability to appear emotionally detached yet passionate completely complimented Turing’s character. Moreover, Morten Tyldum wholly captures the complexities of cracking the Enigma code without making the plot difficult to follow for amateur audiences. Overall, I believe that the Imitation Game remains an extremely well-crafted, stimulating film that displays the societal obstacles that prevent the celebration of success.
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Book Reviews: I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai A riveting depiction of a family uprooted by radical Islamic terrorism, I Am Malala reminds readers of what we take for granted: our freedoms to speech, religion, and our right to an education. Malala’s untethered resilience and bravery in the face of death, fighting for what she believes in, inspires all who stumble upon her story. As a young girl, Malala recounts her unimaginably tumoutulos childhood, leaving readers shell shocked at the nonchalant depiction of violence and corruption in her country. Despite literally facing death at the hands of the Taliban, Yousafzai, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, relentlessly uses her voice to campaign for human rights, inspiring millions of young girls globally. Her unparallelled passion for a female’s right to an education has rang internationally, successfully demonstrating that success can come from even the worst of situations. Although her moments of direct conflict with the Islamic Radicalists had me glued to my seat, I really enjoyed discovering more about her home, the Swat Valley, and everything that she loved and prided it for. The simple connections she draws humanize Malala, highlighting the similarities she shares with young girls all around the world and humbling her and her argument for equal and protected access to education.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett In this fictional story, Kathryn Stockett follows the lives of three black maids in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960’s. Stockett tells this story mainly from the first-person accounts of three characters: Aibileen Clark, Minny Jackson, and Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan. By including the perspectives of these three women, I appreciated the variance in their experiences with race
relations in the South. Additionally, by following their individual plotlines, Stockett really demonstrates the obstacles women faced when searching for success in the United States. Though they did not seemingly succeed occupationally, aside from Skeeter, by escaping their prejudicial environments, readers understand their value as human beings, teaching values of self-worth and basic respect. Although I respect Stockett for casting light on hardships often faced by women of color, I thought that she viewed this topic from a very glorified depiction of discrimination without a true appreciation for the humanity and struggles of the characters. Specifically, I found the overall theme of the story rather unsettling, for it seemingly reinforces the narrow-minded ideology that not all whites treated blacks poorly. This dangerous misconception affirms that we should praise complacency and nonaction, emphasizing her underdeveloped understanding of race relations in America.
Decision: Though I loved reading both I Am Malala and The Help, I would wholeheartedly recommend reading Yousafzai’s book over Stockett’s, for Malala’s story about fighting international terrorism at age 16 resonates with me more than a story about everyday racial tensions in the 1960’s. Additionally, the horrors Malala, faced fascinate me, especially because she continues to champion for human rights today.
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The Merits of Failure in Success Failure; the word itself incites panic, fear, and disapproval. It has a negative, shameful connotation, yet there remains no definitive standard for failure, though many define it in monetary terms. Similar to self-confidence, wealth accumulates over time; however, nowadays, many Americans mistake monetary riches for personal satisfaction, which encourages kids to value occupational and educational success over personal growth. Though we may denounce it, I believe there remains many merits to failure, especially in regards to future success. According to journalists at the Harvard Business Review, in 2015, “ 31% … identified risk-averse culture” as an “obstacle to innovation” (Birkenshaw). Since many businesses remain self-conscious of failure, their fear inhibits any possible future success. Ironically, repeated failures actually ensure success and prosperity. For instance, after discovering any new scientific phenomena, physicists try to explain their observations through the derivation of formulas. To successfully develop a theory, from Newton’s Laws of Motion to Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, physicists must work to improve their findings with years of failure. Eventually, they do find greatness from their improvements. As argued by Ed Catmull, the president of Pixar, “‘They [failures] aren’t evil at all’” (qtd. in Birkenshaw). Moreover, failure allows for the development of critical and analytical thinking skills. Just like learning to ride a bike, developing necessary thinking skills can only occur in the comfort of failure, for what you do after defines you instead. Furthermore, not all successful individuals have always worked towards their current careers. For example, Vera Wang created her first dress at
age 40; prior to that, she failed to get on the Olympic team for figure skating, and Vogue rejected her application for their Editor-in-Chief position (Moss). Moreover, at age 28, J.K. Rowling, famed author of the Harry Potter series, remained a suicidal single parent living on welfare. Even Oprah has lost her job (Moss). These stories, and many more, exemplify that success does not need to occur by the time you graduate from college. Moreover, wealth does not always indicate success. According to Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group and a multi-billionaire, “I am successful… because I am happy” (Elkins). Similarly, Jeannette Walls, a New York Times Best Seller for her memoir, The Glass Castle, denounces her high society life in the Upper East Side of New York City. She contends that her desire for monetary stability came at the expense of her happiness and overall satisfaction with life, encouraging her to break off from her elite society and move out to Virginia with John Taylor, her current husband. Although these examples have achieved great monetary and occupational success, all of them share a love for their occupation. Thus, stressed high school students must understand that passion must prevail, and failure must occur in order for someone to truly become truly successful. 4
Adriana Holst:
stopping when it’s done… I remember being in a hospital and the doctors saying ‘O.K., you can stop now’ after my mandated lap around the hospital and, well, I didn’t. I rolled to the staircase and I would force myself to climb, and I did it, everyday, until I walked, and that’s what it
An experienced thespian and founder of the Grant A Guitar Foundation, Adriana has a passion for benevolence, the arts, and education; she has overcome great tragedies throughout her life, but despite the odds, she has grown as a successful actress and student. She has lobbied for Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, testified in front of Congress, and has auditioned for NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. In this interview, we discuss how she has achieved such success, especially in the performing arts.
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Interviewer: “How do you define success?” Adriana: “I think success is the ability to be content with your current lifestyle, to still continue to challenge yourself but be in a place where you’re happy” Interviewer: “O.K., awesome. Can you describe some of your proudest achievements in your life” Adriana: “ That’s hard… it really might be forming a partnership for Grant a Guitar… I’ve been in professional theater for 10 years, and obviously there’s a lot to be proud of but a lot of that, for me, is always to some degree self-motivated, but now I feel like I’m doing something that truly does help other people, and to know that my voice is being heard and to know that it’s resonating with people was huge for me.” Interviewer: “What steps have you taken to make yourself a more successful individual?” Adriana: “ I think the number one thing is my work ethic. People get lucky sometimes, good things fall into people’s laps, but you have to work… I think there’s a key difference between stopping when someone says you can stop, and
takes, that’s the difference.” Interviewer: “What do you think about failure?” Adriana: “Failure is of course disappointing, but what you do after defines everything… and if you don’t occasionally fail, then what? You’ve reached some ultimate point, then you might as well do nothing since there’s nothing else for you to do. It’s a necessary part of growth, and growth is a necessary part of life.” Interviewer: “What do you wish to see for yourself in the future?” Adriana: “I would love to be able to support myself by doing what I love, which is theater, and I would really love to grow Grant a Guitar… I really wanna see it become a multifaceted way of embracing music literacy and appreciation… I wanna support a musician on the street who’s really good, but cannot afford to pay for dinner, and I wanna help and connect with those people to give them the funds they need to support themselves.”
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Meet the Author: Joely Chinnici
Joely Chinnici, an 11th grade AP English Language student at Chagrin Falls High School, has lived in Ohio for the majority of her life. Ever since a young age, she has dreamed about graduating high school, moving to England, and attending the University of Cambridge. Her passion for academics has only grown since, yet her future goals have completely shifted; now, she constantly worries about if she will get in to college, despite her high academic achievements. This worry and fear ensued due to one momentous change- encountering the affluent upper middle class Chagrin Falls. Moving to Chagrin, she encountered societal expectations unlike anything she’d seen before; the majority of the students she encountered cared largely about grades, college, and future occupations, even at the age of 13. Due to her competitive edge, this shocking environment has led Joely to enroll in six Advanced Placement courses, and she has investigated individual success before in her AP Seminar class. Additionally, her participation in the Stanford Pre Collegiate Summer Program has only further increased her curiosity regarding what motivates success. During this time, she worked alongside some of the brightest kids of her generation, yet many issues still prevailed. She heard stories of
substance abuse, self harm, and a commonly shared pressure to excel from students from all around the world, piquing her interest in what actually motivates high achievement. Additionally, as an officer for Interact Club, Joely has started many initiatives, from volunteering at Hamlet to Fitness Buddies. Though many of her activities remain nonpartisan, she has a true passion for politics and public policy. Initially, she became politically active by volunteering for Hillary Clinton’s Cleveland campaign team and for the Van Jones Love Army. She has also helped organize student walkouts at her school, and she has participated in both the March for Our Lives and the Women’s March on Washington. Furthermore, she has intensely studied race relations in the United States and their connections to current treatment of the LGBTQ community. Her political exposure has only intensified her democratic ideals, and she wishes to study Public Policy in college. Moreover, lifestyles of people from all around the world have always fascinated her; her favorite movies, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and The Lion King, have encouraged her to travel before going to college. A gap year would provide her with the time necessary for self discovery and exploration, which she believes will guarantee greater happiness and success. Additionally, as a student who knows English and French, Joely wants to connect with people of different cultures, mainly those in Francophone countries. Moreover, as demonstrated by her current enrollment in Spanish 1, she wishes to become fluent in more languages. In doing so, she hopes to maximize her success as a global citizen, increasing her potential as a student in higher education and as a employee in the future.
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