HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE INFLUENCING MY SKILLS TPODAY

"Having insufficient skills and experiences is like having a pen whose ink has run out. " High school experiences are always different for different students as the mindsets and the way of perceiving information depend on their personalities. As a learner, I always anticipated gaining as much knowledge as possible through theoretical and practical learning. I wanted to explore the world of knowledge and participate in different extracurricular activities. Like any other student, the time I spent in high school was one of the most precious and memorable periods of my life. I noticed a big difference between middle and high school students. In high school, students were more concerned with getting excellent grades and preparing for college applications. All of them were working dawn to dusk to prepare for competitive examinations. In these four years, I’ve learned so much about myself and my life. I learned what the words; family, love, betrayal, law, and life meant. As per my thinking, this saga of events happened to teach me the most valuable lessons. My high school experience has influenced the development of both my inner and outer self. It made me believe this was the time when I was supposed to shed my baby skin and blossom into a young soul. Exciting activities, quizzes, clubs, and chances to volunteer for amazing causes. These were just a few of the many enjoyable, life-enriching experiences that were available to me in high school. Being involved in extracurricular activities has enriched many aspects of my life. These activities when combined with academics provided a boost to my career goals. Getting involved in different activities like joining the National Cadet Corps, participating in different competitions, attending internship programs, arranging projects, etc. ; assisted me to get over bad moments of my life and helped me to uplift my spirits. I developed six important characteristics through my knowledge and participation in these activities: trustworthiness; respect; responsibility; fairness; care; and citizenship. These helped me to develop mental skills that gave me a mindset where I could differentiate between what to do and what not to, what to accept and imbibe and what to reject and refuse, and, how and when to react. But this is just one aspect. As we look on the other side of the coin, I can remember how the challenges and harsh situations which I endured during my high school days motivated me to become the person that I am today. First and foremost, I faced verbal bullying as I was not very attractive physically. I was looked down on by all my classmates and never thought I could be physically and mentally engaged in any activity. At one point, I felt depressed about these things and was afraid of facing the world. To add to this, I started suffering from some skin diseases. A famous Korean boy band group's interview caught my attention at this point. I was influenced by their thoughts, especially the ideas of their leader. He made me understand that before loving anyone else, I should first love myself. They made me realize the importance of putting my ideas and thoughts in front of other people and the importance of living our life with hope. This acted as a ray of light in the darkness. I gained confidence and started involving myself in different activities regardless of what others thought about me. I even started enjoying the company of my friends and tried my very finest to help all those students who were facing the same issue. I began living my life with no regrets. As a result of these circumstances, I emerged from a state of trauma and low self-esteem into a state of independence and confidence. The second hardship that came on my way to success was the time when the whole world or I should say the universe was fighting the greatest pandemic of all time. When this outbreak of COVID took place, this was a crucial moment in my career orientation. During this period, people suffered from different concerns. And as a student, I started losing interest in specific subjects like chemistry as these subjects required practical learning too. But it was not possible at that point. Due to this, I started getting low grades and could not focus on my studies. With the help of my friends and my inner self, I re-evaluated my goals. I made full use of technology and began spending time with my friend studying online; getting ready for the test to make sure we do not miss out on anything meaningful. Thinking about it now, after some time has passed, I am glad that I was able to change my behavior and attitude towards studying just in time. Currently, I am working harder to gain more knowledge and trying to understand the subjects in which I lacked at that time. Therefore, I think that this has been a pleasant experience. I learned to take more responsibility for my life and actions. Also, I learned to behave like an adult, which will undoubtedly help me in the future. Now I feel more confident in the decisions that I take and the things that I do. Once I move to college, I will undoubtedly remember the experiences I have had, and I will try my best to maintain a balance between my academics and health. To sum up, my experience in high school so far has been both frustrating and joyful. At the same time, I firmly believe that these years will have a significant impact on my future. I hope that my friends and I will be able to study at the colleges we choose. The experiences that individuals gain from high school are very valuable. This is because they allow us to learn more about adult life while remaining in touch with educators and family members