Last semester I saw a tweet about how Baljeet, a fictional character from Phineas & Ferb, wearing a costume that resembles an exam with a big, fat F on it for Halloween, was actually frightening today. I couldn’t agree more! Failing, not just in college but in other situations as well, is terrifying because we put in all our energy to end up with undesired results. It wasn’t until this year that I realized that although failing is unfortunate and shakes our confidence, it is a crucial part of life.
Failing is life’s way of telling you that you’re doing something wrong and you should re-evaluate your habits. This may mean that you have to step out of your comfort zone and change the way you study or approach different problems. Last semester I failed my first exam. It wasn’t a difficult unit and it took me a while to understand why I failed. I studied, went to TA sessions, and attended class. I did everything I normally would do for a higher level class. I remember going home that day and thinking about what I should change about my study habits to make me a better student. I wrote down everything I did to study for this exam and also noted all the questions I missed. Soon enough, I realized that for me taking notes on my laptop wasn’t cutting it because I had trouble remembering everything I typed up on my computer. For the next exam, I started studying a week in advance and wrote down all my notes. I even forced my brother to sit down with me so I can explain to him some of the concepts. They say that if you can teach someone else, then that means that you, yourself know the material pretty well. My method worked! I did so much better on the upcoming exams and got a good grade in the class as well.
The word success does not mean that you have to get an A in every class or be perfect at every small aspect of life. Success is when you work hard, step out of your comfort zone, and do whatever it takes to achieve your goals. The experience I mentioned above really taught me the importance of hard work and made me more humble, as well. If you never struggle, then it may just make you more arrogant and egotistic. Failure teaches you how to be resilient and how to take initiative if things aren’t going the way you want them to be. That being said, ladies, as a college student, please do not neglect a major or a minor or even a class because you are scared of failing. Think of it as a chance to grow! I know it doesn’t get any easier, but you can work harder. So take that 400 level course, apply to that graduate school, become that surgeon, write that badass article, but whatever path you choose, do not let failure scare you. The future is female!