As another semester begins, another 3 weeks pass where the Penn State campus gyms have a line out the door, and I’ll wait 15 minutes before I can find an open bench. However, day by day, the mobs dissipate, the lines at the door disappear, and the number of gym-goers is cut in half. It isn’t hard to figure out why; exercise is hard. Its uncomfortable, and people don’t like being uncomfortable, but quitting is easy, and people much prefer to do things that are easy. But those that stay reap the benefits of their work, which can include confidence, longer life, and personal satisfaction, while those that chose to quit may not experience this long-term satisfaction.
This is not a speech about gym motivation, because this concept of the payoff of hard work vs the suffering brought on by inaction exists everywhere, all the time. What is so often misunderstood is that opting for the easy things doesn’t prevent hardship, it merely postpones it.
Let it be known that I am no saint. It is rare that I will tumble out of bed without having hit the snooze button on my alarm at least once, because I just don’t wanna get up, plain and simple. Getting up early is hard, especially after sleeping two hours short of what’s healthy since I couldn’t bring myself to just do my homework at a reasonable time. I don’t like doing these things, because they’re hard.
But even more difficult than this is being a passive observer of my own life, watching as time slips away and swallows the fulfillment I so desire in its current. So while I have my fair share of bad habits that need work, I strive to own every day and take charge of my own success.
Getting stuck settling for less and ignoring the opportunities I encounter brings on a whole new kind of suffering. It is the suffering of a life that isn’t truly mine. How long will I wait in discontent for the pieces to fall into place? How long until I experience the depression of seeing how much I missed out on simply because I didn’t feel like putting in the effort? Pursuing your passion is never easy, but neither is a lifetime of regret. So, suffer for a reason. Though it may pain me now, I know that the hard work towards things I truly care about is worth it just for the sake of not experiencing that misery.
So think to yourself, what’s worse? A life that’s hard because you lack the will to control it? Or a life that’s hard because of the patience and work you put forth to make it your own?
I believe that my life will be difficult no matter what, so it’s up to me to decide what kind of difficult I want it to be.
You have a good idea for this piece. Your introduction is strong, and I like how you shift from the anecdote to your broader message. However, I would like to see more detail in your personal experience of taking the more comfortable route. How did it affect you? Perhaps you could go into greater detail about how that postponed discomfort felt. Use figures of speech to really hit home to your audience what you mean. You also spend a lot of time developing the belief without mentioning the experiences that led to it. Extending that anecdote of taking the “easy” route will help with this. You could also list other scenarios in which people tend to take the easy route, such as ordering takeout versus cooking, skipping class, etc. Besides that, you have a good structure to start with, and I’m looking forward to seeing how you flesh this idea out further. Great job!
I think this piece was very good. I loved the concept of working hard, and how even though it could be discomforting at times, it can be worth it in the end. I also really liked how you ended questions for the audience to think about in your piece. I think you should add more about your personal experience in the piece how at times you have experienced comfort/discomfort and how it made you feel as life can be hard. I think by doing this your conflict can have more cause/effect and transformation in your piece. Overall, I think you did a great job!
I love this idea for your “This I Believe” Essay. Your introduction is great with a strong hook and the tone and shift of the piece is also really well-written. I really like how much detail you use for the reader to capture an image in their head and how you ask rhetorical questions to close off the piece. Overall, I think this looks great so far!