Seth Godin blogged today about "worth it." It's like he wrote it for nervous high school kids who want to go to highly selective colleges.
Some students who want to go to competitive colleges only want to do things in high school if they’re going to be “worth it.” And to them, “worth it” is an acceptance letter from their dream college.
If they didn’t attach a specific outcome to their effort, they’d see that just about everything they’re doing is worth it.
Is it worth it to take challenging classes? Is it worth it to study and try your best to get good grades? Is it worth it to pull the occasional late night to study for trig, to volunteer at the hospital, to run the fundraiser for the French club, to take karate classes, to work a part time job at the mall, to be the secretary of the student body, to take pictures for the school newspaper, to run with the cross country team during the summer, to raise your hand and ask good questions in class, to take on responsibility in your club or be the bench warmer with a great attitude or help out the kid struggling in biology?
Of course it’s worth it. You’re smarter and happier. You’ve learned more about yourself and what you’re good at. You’re more confident and self-aware. You’ve proven that you can work hard, make a difference, and leave a legacy long after you’re gone from high school.
Once you look at why it’s really worth it, it doesn’t matter whether Duke says yes.
There’s nothing wrong with setting goals and even having a dream college or two. But don’t let a college tell you whether it was all worth it. It is. And you’ll see so for yourself once you get to a college that has the foresight to say yes.