|
Feature Article | |
| ||
|
|
The language of success Going back to school requires learning new languages – no, not French or Italian, though you may learn those, too. I mean the language of academia: baccalaureate, matriculation, capping, thesis, etc. Then there's the language of financial aid: FAFSA, Perkins, Stafford, subsidized and unsubsidized loans, etc. The vocabulary is confusing, but we quickly get comfortable with it as we settle into the academic routine. More difficult is the language of success. We know the words of this language, but may not be able to use them properly. Using the right words produces a desired outcome. Using the wrong words handicaps us. As an example, listen to some of the phrases we've heard at the Adult Student Center. Successful – looking for positives, confidence, awareness Handicappers - excuses, doubt, resignation To break out of the handicapper's language, it helps to relearn phrases from childhood, the ones we spoke without fear ("I can do that, let me try"), the ones we spoke when all things were imaginable and, therefore, possible. This was a time when we could experiment without self-consciousness. We could dismiss our failures, like falling down when we started to walk. In fact, they weren't failures at all, they were simply temporary setbacks to be overcome. The right words help us visualize a successful future – graduation, a satisfying career – and deal with the setbacks. With constant repetition and reinforcement, we begin to internalize them, and to believe in ourselves. You'll know you're fluent with the language of success when you start guiding other students towards it. As one student told us on her journey away from handicap to success, "I began to reach out to other non-traditional students, making sure to mentor and advise as many as I could." 11/20/01 TOP |
|
|||||||
Home About NDG Contact Us Privacy
| ||||||||||
