Teen Life Stories you should know about Growing Up

Persistence and Grit

So, growing up, I tried to be my best self at all times when I was a kid. I did not want to make myself obvious and certainly I did not want to make a scene. I just hoped that I would melt and dissolve into the background like how a wasted ice-cream melts on the floor, or like how trees blend in the backdrop of a boundless forest. I just tried so hard to not be seen as a kid. But then one day out of nowhere, my class teacher told our class about a new drama show she was putting up for students to join. Out of the blue, she just picked me as one of the many students to take up the main role in the story. 

I was shocked, then terrified. I was very scared because of the "what-ifs". What if I forgot about my line while I was performing? What if after I performed, people would "boo" at me? What if my classmates would gossip how bad an actress I was? My mind was racing with a train of thoughts. Then when I went home, I cried my heart out about it to my dad. He surprisingly was very receptive about the idea of it. His words still stuck in my head until this day. He told me a two-word phrase in Chinese, "堅毅", that basically translates to "Grit". Grit, meaning that, you stick with the difficulties you are facing with determination and courage. I was not fully aware of the meaning of the phrase at that age, not until now I really do. Grit is not something you gain immediately in life, but it comes with experiences and practice.

When I was younger, my dad used to tell me a lot of life stories he knew from other people or experiences he had when he was younger. He told me about the life story of his dear friend, who is now a medical professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong specializing in the field of surgery. And I could say that, this friend is an exemplar of grit. He is the perfect example to illustrate the idea of grit. Before he went for his public exam back in the 1980s, he was not a bright student, in fact, he was far from brilliance. The first time he went for his public examination in Hong Kong, he barely passed all the subjects. Clearly, he was disappointed by his exam results. But his story did not stop here. He worked really hard to study for the exams and chose to defer his studies to reattempt and sit for the public exam for the second time. To no avail, he did not pass the exam again. Let us stop and pause for a while here, could you imagine someone's pain and despair in working for something so arduous only to find out that you are failing so many exams, that is two times in a row? Yes, it was a very huge blow to him. But yes, you guessed it right, he did not give up. 

After failing two years' Hong Kong public exams, he tried to study and achieve success again in the year after again. And this third time of reattempt, he did succeed in the public exam. Not only did he succeed, he went straight into medical school in Hong Kong, one of the faculties in Hong Kong universities that represent exemplary excellence. At last, he became a legend of his own, and an inspiration to many. This is exactly a life story of a person with a growth mindset. People with growth mindsets will not be afraid of challenges, instead they believe that their intelligence and talents are subject to their own hard work and perseverance. So they work hard for what they set their minds to and hope for the best outcomes in their lives. When they fail, they will look at what they can do better but they will never give up, because do you know what they say about life? Failures are the mother of success. So lesson number three, never give up in life and strive for success.

What I am trying to say is that, when life throws you lemons, make lemonade. Take whatever life gives and takes you and create and build your life based on that. Do not easily give up on your challenges in life because essentially, when you achieve your goals after working for so long or after you have shed so much blood, sweats and tears for it, you will realize that all things are worth the effort. 

Do not forget, nothing can be achieved without blood and sweat. There is no such thing as a free lunch in the world. If you really want to get something, go for it. Life is not about missing chances, it is about creating opportunities. And never overthink it, sometimes it is worse to be indecisive than to be wrong about certain decisions. Who knows? They may even not be bad decisions. So, key takeaway. Never. Give. Up. Easily. Do you still want to have a listen of how I overcame my drama stage fright?

After talking to my dad, I practiced really hard for the drama show. I kept running the lines in my head and I kept making sure that I did not miss the lines whilst I was practicing with the script. Then I practiced in front of my parents, and they gave me some advice on how I could do it better. I then revised my performance based on their advice. I spent much time practicing, over and over again until every word in the lines stuck in my head. Even before I went to bed, I was still practicing the lines in my head. Few days after, when it was time for me to go on stage, honestly, it crept me out. 

I recalled how before I went on stage, my hands were sweating and trembling so much and my mind went absolute blank. I did not know what I should do, and I was starting to think about the "What ifs" again. I ran on the lines in auto-mode and then before I knew it, the performance ended. It went well, so well that all my classmates were cheering on for me, marveling at my success that I overcame my stage fright, well at least partially.

I am now telling you this because preparation is what most people would likely ignore its significance when they are doing a performance, or anything really. An example would be, experienced professors at universities might find it useless to go over the scripts of teaching after going over with it for so many times, only to find out that they will one day actually be critically challenged by students about their teachings. Experienced directors in the filming industry might find it hard to adapt to different approaches of how to create the best angle and the best lighting for certain shots. Discordance might stem from not having enough prep work done to communicate between different parties within the crew. 

Therefore, just remember, good things come to those who prepare and work their ass off. Even though for the act of doing, it is not always about the outcome, but people who prepare well will already have succeeded half-way through to reach their goals. So always be prepared in whatever you want to do in life, be it just baking a lemon chiffon cake or taking on a full-time job or studying for your exams. So lesson number four, life rewards to those who prepare.