<p>I want a question answered by the majority of CC. This thread has been posted numerous times, and yell at me if you want. I don't care.</p>
<p>How do you deal with the pressure of high expectations? These include, but are not limited to: People expect you to go to Harvard, Yale, etc.; People expect you to constantly get 5.0 out of a 4.0 GPA scale; People expect you to be the top of your class; People expect you to be the superlative student/athlete who incessantly wins numerous awards and accolades on the national level.</p>
<p>Or maybe more important, how do you deal with the pressure you give yourself? Do you feel that you must attend Harvard to become a "success?" Do you feel that your first A- will officially brand you as an incompetent slacker? </p>
<p>How do you deal with "failure?" How do you label things as "failure?"</p>
<p>As you can tell, I am having serious reconsiderations as to where my life is headed, financially, educationally, etc.</p>
<p>WOW, ok you sound stressed out... so I'm going to say calm down first of all (I'm not sure if you really need it, but I said it anyways). I'm put into situations where the pressure gets to me, but usually I can handle it. I think the most pressure comes from my teachers and myself. My parents just want me to do my best and if that's a B average, they'll understand, luckily it's not though. My teachers expect me to do great once I get an A on the first paper of the year. It's as if once you start doing well, they'll just keep putting pressure on you to do better because they know that you can.
I put pressure on myself because I want to do well. If I write a test where I know I could have done better it drives me insane. My friends end up trying to calm me down, but it doesn't really work....so there's me all stressed out with probably another test next block. It's not a pretty sight.
I just want to do well because my parents don't put pressure on me. This might sound weird, but because they just want me to try, I want to do great, just for them.
I'm not really sure how I deal with the pressure, as I said, usually I try to let it slide by... the pressure that does get to me, I usually vent out by studying really hard for the next major test. Once I do well on that one, I feel better until new pressure arises.</p>
<p>By the way, don't think too much about everything around you. You'll end up overthinking it or you'll end up not being sure of the decision that you made...... Keep yourself grounded if you can.</p>
<p>As the other posters have said relax; take a deep breath. Keep in mind that in the grand scheme of things, a lower score on one test or assignment probably isn't going affect your mark too greatly (as long as it's not a major assignment or your unit final), and it certainly doesn't mean that you are a failure at life. </p>
<p>Try and find something that you enjoy doing, something that relaxes you. For me, it's dance; dance class is a place for me to de-stress and it lets me stop worrying about school for a while. For some of my friends, it's playing a sport/musical instrument, or reading.</p>
<p>Some small things I've learned over the course of my high school "career"...</p>
<p>People expect you to do a lot of things. But, in the end, it's always your decision of what you want to do, and what you are physically capable of doing. </p>
<p>Never fear failure, embrace it. We can learn something great about ourselves when we "fail" in our own opinion. To be cliche, "we fall so we can get back up."</p>
<p>Stress is never your friend. A lot of people equate stress with success, but it doesn't have to be so. I'm learning this year that you can do well even if you aren't beating yourself up every 5 seconds. </p>
<p>First of all, thanks for the replies. Second of all, I am not extremely depressed or immersed in psychotic feelings. Just a little impassioned about my situation.</p>
<p>I have always observed myself as just another human being in the pool of six billion people that is earth--not as a unique human being. Therefore, creativity, genius, and some other ways of making myself an exclusive person has been a life-long pursuit. </p>
<p>To be succinct, maybe I'm just afraid of failure. That one day, I'll look back on myself as just another human that passed through his life with nothing special but the same-old stuff. </p>
<p>Please do not get the idea that I am majorly depressed. I am merely questioning my existence and my reason for being. In fact, I am having fun with lots of things like school, soccer, friends, etc. But I cannot deny that these "questions" have been pervading my life as of late, causing some stress here and there, but nothing major.</p>
<p>Just remember that success isn't determined by never "failing". It's a measure of how you deal with mistakes. :)</p>
<p>When I get stressed, I try to put the situation in the grand sceme of things. One test, one day, one year of your whole life can be whatever you make of it.</p>
<p>I like pressure. It gives me motivational to do well. Without pressure, I'd probably be just like my average friends.</p>
<p>If you get stressed, sleep it off!</p>
<p>If everyone's expecting you to go to Harvard, and you don't get in.. well tough titties.. Maybe your parents will get peeved off and not talk to you for a while (if they are really mad..) but at the end of the day, everyone will be happy. That's how I see it.. If you get into a fight with your friend, at the end of the week/month/year, everyone will be happy.</p>
<p>And you are special. I'd say about 60% of the world are bums, alcoholics, stoners, suicidal, indifferent (ok I learnt that word quite a while ago... it means 'not caring' right?)</p>
<p>25% probably do care about their life but do not have that 'push'.. they just want to get a job, make money, have a life.</p>
<p>And us - 15% - the people that do care about alot of things. We are affectionate and have the motivation to get A's. We want a fantastic life. We have dreams and the possiblity is so wide for us. We are teenagers with super emotional and puberty problems.. I mean, adults and seniors can't go through with those kinda stuff.
And since you're on cc, I'd say you are pretty damn special :)</p>
<p>Here are some quotations that will hopefully give you insight:
[quote]
Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently - HENRY FORD
I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work - THOMAS EDISON<br>
Success is a journey not a destination - GITA BELLIN<br> "Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, it's not the end."