Example Essays

In a letter initially intended for his wife, Thomas Jefferson wrote “determine never to be idle. no person will have occasion to complain of the want of time, who never loses any. it is wonderful how much may be done, if we are always doing.” One might read this quote and disagree with Jefferson, believing that being idle serves the purpose of allowing thoughts and ideas to flow without distraction. However, unless they go out and make something out of their ideas, they will go to waste. I believe that we accomplish more if we are always doing something because it is the only way for us to gain experience and discover new opportunities.

First, being active is the only way to learn new things. Sitting idle gives us a chance to get our thoughts together and plan things out; that much is true, but these plans will amount to nothing if we don’t even attempt to acquire the skills necessary in making them a reality. Being active doesn’t always mean literally being active in the physical sense. If the goal you’re trying to reach warrants it, then you can learn skills from online sources and the like. You’re actually doing something by seeking out the information yourself, so it doesn’t really matter how you go about it. It is also the only way for us to gain experience. Think about the quote “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Many people are afraid of failure, so they simply let opportunities pass them by and don’t go outside of their comfort zone. This isn’t a good way of going about life because failure is something that can be learned from and helps you improve on things that you wouldn’t know needed improvement if you didn’t try at all.

Another reason is that always doing something leads to new opportunities. Your newly acquired skills can open the door to new paths that you may have never envisioned. For example, I want to be a video game developer in the future, so I enrolled in many computer science and programming classes. However, if I wanted to, I could use what I’ve learned to enter a plethora of other fields like data science and computer systems engineering, all of which require similar skills to that of a game developer. You never know; that new field might actually end up being better for you, and you’ll look back on your decision to be proactive fondly.

In conclusion, I agree with Jefferson’s sentiment about being idle. Proactivity allows us to learn and gain experience that can help us eventually come across new opportunities in our lives. Many will attempt to refute this, saying that being idle comes with many benefits like the ability to relax if you’re constantly busy. While this is definitely important in a vacuum, you can’t get too caught up in it and forget to go accomplish things. With the way society is currently moving and evolving, I feel like many people need to hear this and turn their life around.

"Your character will be what you yourself choose to make it" said by john Lubbock, a British naturalist and politician. John published many books one being "your character will make it" dedicated solely to this idea. One can argue that you character is built by external forces that you have no control of. However, our character is how you view yourself. One's character decides on the persons willingness to change, experiences that you go through, and the reflection that people have on life. 

The environment that you grow up in is one you don’t choose. Meaning that certain experiences that one can go through is not ideal. A large number of people that come from low income families face the same experiences growing up, but through these harsh experiences some can choose not to bend to their environment and choose to be better. There are many famous people that had to overcome hardships in life, to get where there are now. Oprah Winfrey is an example of this. Oprah grew up poor in Mississippi and had a troubled upbringing, and many treaded her poorly, but instead of letting others and her surrounding define her, she decided to attend college and choose to help other people that were in need. Character traits are something that you yourself have to change and define. experiences that you go through is just one of the many things that can have an affect your character. 

Although experiences don’t define your character, they can have an effect on you. As you move through life, reflecting on what you’ve been through is very important. Looking back on the past, it can give that you have a better understanding on life. the way you handle certain situations now and then are very different. Reflection to certain situations can have a major effect on your character.  

Overall, your character cannot be determined by outside forces but is controlled by yourself. Character is based on experiences you go through in life, a person's willingness to change their behavior, and the reflection on your pasted actions. Madonna once said "No matter who you are, no matter what you did, no matter where you've come from, you can always change, become a better version of yourself." Life can be very forgiving; change in any good and not being stuck in bad ways can have a positive effect on you and the things around you. 

Winston Churchill once said "Succes consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." Even though most success involves a stroke of luck like going viral, or being born into a wealthy family. I took this quote to heart, and believe it is true because success is subjective, failure allows you to learn from your mistakes, and you will need a second perspective  

First and foremost, success is very subjective, and, more often than not greatly depends on the perspective of the person. For example, my version of success could be that I passed my Basic Algebra 2 test. While on the other hand, you are already a savant at Algebra 2 and no longer see passing a Basic Algebra 2 test as a form of success. Even though others might see your "minor success" as mondain, it shouldn't downplay how much you’ve learned from it, apply that that knowledge from your "minor success" to your future endeavors and I guarantee you will succeed 

Secondly, you learn from failure. What happens when you fail? Either you give up entirely never to try again, or you get back up, dust your knees off, and try again. This mindset is the same for every failure in your life. You just need learn to apply the mistake that made you fail on your next attempt. Even though you may have the motivation to give it a second attempt, you need to keep that same motivation to get through the mental gymnastics of giving it a THIRD attempt if you failed once more. Once you’ve mastered said gymnastics you will develop a mental calas assisting you in subsequential attempts until you eventually succeed.  

Lastly, some things are simply impossible without someone else perspective of the situation. You may feel like you’ve hit a wall at some point during the trial and error of the "succession process." If so, simply ask for someone else's  perspective of the situation. Even if the perspective is negative you can still use it as a valid point of criticism and amazing learning opportunity for your journey. Someone else's help doesn’t just have to be another perspective, it can be reasons why your wrong, how improve upon what you’ve already done, etc. All of these being different ways to make you think differently about your action at hand. 

In conclusion, I believe Succes consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm, even though it requires lots of luck and is very challenging, you will learn from your mistakes, ask for someone else's perspective, and realize that success is subjective. Now take what you've learned in this essay and apply it to yourself, because I want to see you succeed.  

Thomas Jefferson once wrote, "Determine never to be idle... It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing." People always have a lot of work to get done. However, if they had scheduled times to have for themselves without doing any work, it could greatly affect them for the better. Jefferson accomplished a lot in his life, but people can still accomplish a lot if they aren't constantly working. Being idle from time to time allows people to relax physically, mentally, and with family and friends. 

First and foremost, having inactivity in people's lives allow them to mentally relax and have time for themselves. For example, after having a long day at work or school, people could come home and do some exercise or yoga to bring their stress levels down. People coming home and knowing they can get a break can boost their mood and make them feel better. Also, home is supposed to be a safe space, so when people get home and have even more work to do, it can be very stressful and straining not having time to relax. If people were to schedule a time for themself to not have to do any work and strictly just relax, it would be a major benefit for them. 

Secondly, being idle helps people physically relax. When people get home, they most likely have chores they need to get done, or maybe some other work that needs to be completed. Although, if people were to allow themselves with time to relax, they could come home and lay down for a little bit and then get to work. For example, people could watch a tv show or a movie to relax themselves after a long day. They could also take a read or journal to get their minds off work and put it to doing something more creative. These things could help people not be as physically drained during the day and give them time to do things they want to do. 

Last but not least, not having to work gives people time to hang out with family and friends. Many people make excuses to not visit family because they think it would be a better use of time to get work done instead. However, that could put strain on the relationship with family members, so it is better use of their time to schedule visits when work isn't necessary. Going to family gatherings or visiting on holidays would benefit people and give them a break from work that they greatly need. People also tend to delay hanging out with friends because they have too much work to do. So if people were to allow themselves some time without working, they could instead spend time with the people in love. 

In conclusion, if people spent more time to themself, they would be able to relax a lot more and be less stressed. Having time for yourself and spending time with family are great benefits that people would have if they didn't constantly work and had time to relax. Although people believe getting a lot of work done is better use of their time, relaxing is a big part of bettering their life, and it is essential. People need to start taking time to themselves because sometimes a little procrastination can do them good. 

Is it easy to be yourself or will you always be following others? Everyone is always asked that question and nobody answers it. Being yourself is a bad thing because you’ll be outcast, however I disagree with this statement. I believe that being yourself when everything is changing around you is good because you won’t disappoint yourself,you and other people can learn from your mistakes, and your ideas will come from your own point of view.  

My most important reason is that people fear about disappointing themselves and since they fear about disappointing themselves they won’t try and be themselves because everyone else is following one path and when it’s their turn to choose their path they’ll go the same way everyone else would go because they know that path is easy ,but the people who go their own path have to work each day to be themselves to be something and if they keep striving that their own path then they could become rich,famous,and more which would cause people to follow your path of doing your own thing and at the end of the day you’ll be happier and more content with yourself.

My next important reason is that people can learn from your downfalls because whether its a game or a job people would only do things,then brush it off, and then they get in trouble and they’ll only say that they’ll “learn from it”, however nobody will help you if your on your own,but it's a good thing that you don’t get help because every mistake you learn from your mistakes and perfect your thing to where it’s really good ,and when people come along to learn what your doing they’ll make your own mistakes as they go along as well and they’ll get better at it later as well you could teach people about it and have them try and recreate it.

My final important reason is that every idea comes from you, which is a good thing because everyone wants to use their own idea into what they’re doing, but they can’t because the path they follow would already have their ideas set for them which would cause them to fall in line like everyone else ,but if you go own your own personal path than your decisions have more weight and more importance to your path. An example i have is most people would try and get famous off of tiktok,instagram,or any other type of social media, but you go into the NFL or any other sport and you get famous off of your love for the game and at the end of the day your decisions and  sacrifice would be worth it.  Another example I have is most people would choose the easiest path because it has easy options ,but the more difficult path would have the harder options but the best giveback and if you choose the hard option and you're successful that would make you feel 10x or 20x better than someone who took the easy path.

 I believe that being yourself when everything is changing around you is good because you won’t sell yourself short,you and other people can learn from your failures and successes, and your ideas would be fresh and untouched.

Somepeople would say that being yourself can cause more problems because no one would be there to help you if you fail, people won’t help you or could prove uninterested, and that whatever your doing wouldn’t make it far, But I disagree with this entire claim because only looking at the hard part will hold you back and your dreams.

Be yourself,Be original, Be you. 

Losing oneself in helping others holds the key to self-discovery and personal growth. Not everyone believes that helping others is an excellent path to self-discovery; many believe that self-discovery can only be achieved through personal reflection. I agree with Gandhi's statement that "the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." Helping others can be a transformative experience that benefits those in need and allows individuals to discover more about themselves, cultivate essential life skills, and develop a deeper sense of purpose.

Engaging in acts of service provides a unique opportunity for individuals to embark on a journey of self-discovery. By stepping outside of their comfort zones and immersing themselves in the lives and struggles of others, individuals are often confronted with new perspectives and challenges. This exposure can lead to a profound exploration of their own values, beliefs, and priorities. For instance, someone who volunteers at a local community center may initially do so to fulfill a sense of social responsibility. However, as they become more involved and form connections with the people they are helping, they may uncover hidden talents, passions, or even latent empathetic qualities they were previously unaware of. This process of self-discovery can be transformative, allowing individuals to gain a clearer understanding of themselves and their place in the world.

Participating in acts of service offers a platform for individuals to cultivate essential life skills. Compassion, empathy, effective communication, problem-solving, and teamwork are just a few of the valuable abilities that can be nurtured through service to others. For instance, working in a disaster relief organization may require individuals to collaborate with diverse teams, adapt to rapidly changing situations, and empathize with the immediate needs of those affected by a crisis. These skills, honed through service, not only benefit the recipients but also empower individuals to become more resourceful and adaptable in their daily lives. Moreover, they enhance an individual's capacity to tackle the multifaceted challenges that life presents, fostering a sense of self-efficacy and resilience.

Service to others can be a powerful catalyst for developing a deeper sense of purpose. When individuals engage in acts of kindness and altruism, they often derive a profound sense of fulfillment from knowing that they are making a positive impact on the lives of others. This sense of purpose can transcend personal gain and serve as a guiding force in an individual's life. For example, a person who volunteers in a program for underprivileged youth not only contributes to their well-being but may also discover a strong sense of responsibility toward the betterment of young lives. This newfound purpose can motivate them to pursue a career in education or social work, or even inspire them to advocate for policies that benefit marginalized communities. In this way, service fosters a deeper connection to the world and imbues one's life with meaning and direction, ultimately contributing to personal growth and fulfillment.

In conclusion, Gandhi's timeless wisdom reminds us that the true essence of self-discovery lies not only in introspection but also in our ability to make a positive impact on the world. By serving others, we uncover not just our capacity for empathy and compassion but also the depths of our own character. As we navigate the intricate path of life, it becomes increasingly clear that finding ourselves is intricately linked with the act of losing ourselves in the service of others, making the journey all the more rewarding and enriching. Take a step today to help someone in need, and in doing so, you might just discover a new facet of yourself.