JianYu (Damon) Zhang, Period 7, 3/21/23

JianYu (Damon) Zhang, Period 7, 3/21/23

Atomic Habits & Growth

It was a fight for survival. 

Now, I’m not in danger. It was a mindset I gave myself during my first semester of my senior year. Feeling a degree of stagnation during quarantine, where I felt that I took it easy academically, I decided to “punish” myself by taking as many difficult courses as possible. Doing this gave me a sense of redemption, but it backfired once I was slapped by college applications, and my free time evaporated in the month of December. As the dust settled, I currently stand in the crossroads of chaos and anxiety (closer to the latter as college decisions come). As much as I would like to rest and take it easy for the second semester, I wanted to fulfill my pledge I made for my senior year. I would finish off the year strong, and it currently became my only goal and standard.

It is safe to say that Senioritis affects everyone, but people react differently to it. For me, I try to force myself to combat it through sheer determination, will, and procrastination. The panic that comes after the joyous effects of procrastination is enough for me to finish my latest psychology outline at 11:30 pm, and sleep at 11:31pm. It was not easy to stay on track with work and be tempted by laziness and sleep, but I find myself overcoming it each day. This battle for motivation became a routine. Despite how unproductive it may seem to others, it worked for me, and as people say, don’t fix what is not broken. As the days count closer to graduation, I feel somewhat proud that I am keeping the promise I made to myself. My report card and averages became a gauge for my strategy’s success, and it reassures me of my strategy’s performance. I hope that my determination will persist and allow me to get work done, in a time where senioritis becomes more severe.