Friday, September 9, 2011

Lunch ‘n’ Learn: Get Psyched

In honor of International Enthusiasm Week, this Lunch ‘n’ Learn for September was about enthusiasm -- what does it mean and how do you get enthusiastic about your education and life?


We were to choose one quote about enthusiasm from the pile on the table in front of us to read aloud. One quote that really stuck with me was by Maya Angelou:


“Seek patience and passion in equal amounts. Patience alone will not build the temple. Passion alone will destroy its walls.”


What a fitting quote for us MPTC students. College requires both passion and patience. Earning a certificate, diploma, or degree does not happen overnight. It requires patience. It requires going to class each week, working on homework everyday, and this is all done through the course of several months or several years.


Being patient, however, will not earn your degree alone. It takes passion and motivation to get to class each week, to work on homework each day, and maintain that enthusiasm for several months or several years. Too much passion can lead to impatience, I think. So many of us want that degree and we cannot wait until it is in our hands and written on our resumes. It may lead us to become too impatient and loose our enthusiasm.


So how do we maintain our enthusiasm and patience in equal amounts? This makes me think of another quote I’ve heard before, but I’m not sure who originally said it:


“Invest in the process, not the outcome.”


The actual paper known as your certificate or diploma does not give you the knowledge or power you need to make your career happen. The knowledge and power to succeed in your chosen field comes from the classes you go to each week and the homework you do each day. Everything you do at school or for school is another step towards your goal. Each day is a brick you lay down. Keep working and you will build that temple.

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