After I do one of our college essay seminars for a crowd, I’ll often meet students afterwards who are torn between potential stories for an essay. Their indecision usually sounds something like this:
“One story would show my (insert strength or personality trait here), but the other shows my (insert a different strength or personality trait here).”
My answer usually reminds them they can’t possibly share everything about themselves in one college application. For each essay, the best approach is almost always to pick one slice of your life and use the essay to really help the reader understand it.
Human beings are complex. None of us can be thoroughly explained in one college application any more than we could help someone understand everything about who we are in a brief conversation.
So release yourself of that obligation. You can’t cover everything. Instead, pick a slice. And if your story makes your best friend say, “This is so you,” you probably picked a good slice.