College Application Essay Research Paper PerseveranceThere goes

College Application Essay, Research Paper

Perseverance

There goes Wile E. Coyote again, initiating the first phase of his plan. The rockets attached to his feet make him reach speeds fast enough to catch the Roadrunner. Oops! He accidentally put them on backwards. To his dismay, when he activates them, he shoots backwards into a cliff as the Roadrunner speeds off in the other direction. Even though he is in extreme pain, he gets up and starts formulating his next plan. He has the amazing ability to never give up, which I feel is a quality I share. Whether in the classroom or on the playing field, perseverance makes the difference between simply being average or excelling.

Newt Gingrich, former Republican Speaker of the House, once said: ?Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.? These words strike at the heart of how I think. To get better at something, I need to practice until I am literaly sick of it, and then keep practicing. When I was in fifth grade, I joined the school band. Like many of the other kids, my playing skills were not very good. At first I practiced single notes, then scales, and finally actual songs. Eventually I became the best fifth grade saxophone player in the school. Then my family moved to Mahomet. After hearing how well the other students were playing, I knew that my practice time was going to have to increase if I wanted to be first chair. I practiced, and practiced, and practiced some more. In the end, the reward of being selected first chair was worth the effort.