By Wanshan Li
What characteristics or quality must a successful person have? Some may say talent. Others may argue that is luck. Their answers may be right but not complete. Because, from my own experience, I know the most important thing is self-motivation and hard work.
In my hometown, a math competition was held among peer students in some grade level every year. A few students were to be chosen, usually by their math teacher, to participate in this math competition, representing their class in each school. When I was a fifth grader in elementary school, I was chosen with other classmates to represent our school. Way before the date of the competition, we received special tutoring after school. I went there every time and did the practice very seriously. After each test in which we were monitored our progresses, I attempted to correct and understand the mistakes I made.
Not long after the competition date, the result was announced. I was surprised to know from my math teacher that I had the highest score and won the competition. In a school assembly, I was called to the front of the podia. In the eyes and applauses of all students in the school, I was praised and given notebooks with the stamp of the education board of my town by the Principle. This was the first time in my life that I received such an honor. When I walked around in campus, teachers smiled at me and classmates looked at me with admiring.
After that, I gradually became arrogant and I thought I must be a math genius. I started fooling around in class. When the math teacher said there was a better method than mine to solve a problem, I felt indifference. I thought, as long as I can solve it, it did not matter what method I used. A year passed and a new math competition was going to be held. I was chosen again to receive special after-school tutoring to prepare the sixth-graders' math competition. The teachers and students looked forward to have me bring honor and fame to the school again. But this time I brought disappointment to them. I did not do well. They passed by me with silence and looked at me with condemn. I was deeply depressed by their silent blame.
I had not recognized the significance of my participation in those two math competitions until a few years later I read a quotation from a German scholar, whose name I had forgotten. But I recognized that one important element a successful people needed to have was hardworking, no matter he/she was gifted or not. In order to achieve anything, a person must make some effort, otherwise nothing can be done. From that enlightenment on, I formed my "do my best" philosophy. Whatever I do, I need to do my best. Otherwise don't do it at all. The quote from that German scholar roughly runs like this, "the value of a person is not determined by whether you have owned the knowledge or not but the restless pursuit of truth."
Last modified: February 18, 2006