<p>How do people win so many awards? I consider myself pretty smart, but I don't do well in competitions. I tried taking Math competitions (AMC), but the questions were way too hard for me since I'm not a math genius.</p>
<p>You find something you are really good at, and work hard, and then you can get awards. There are lots of awards other than math–creating writing, debate, music, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, many others.</p>
<p>Also, you can’t get awards if you don’t apply for them.</p>
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<p>No, they were too hard for you because you didn’t know how to solve them. That kind of math isn’t usually taught in high school, and you can’t expect to understand it without, y’know, studying it. People always say they’re not smart enough because it gets them off the hook and they don’t have to feel that it was their lack of hard work that led to their failure. (Not that doing badly on the AMC is a failure, because I did badly on it also. :))</p>
<p>Apply for lots of awards. I have a decent number on my resume, it is not because I win everything, it is because I apply to tons (I probably loose 3/4 of the time). Also don’t limit yourself, apply for things that focus on academic achievement, leadership, community service, your favorite subjects and more!</p>