Elevator to Success Internal Drive a Key Ingredient - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / Elevator to Success Internal Drive a Key Ingredient - Introvert Whisperer Elevator to Success: Internal Drive a Key Ingredient Elevator to Success: Internal Drive a Key Ingredient Recently I had an epiphany -drum roll, please. An internal drive to succeed is the secret sauce of a fruitful career. Personality type or education levelâ€"both factors can determine the difficulty that individuals will face when finding success, but education level or emotional make-up will not doom an individual to a fiery pit of failure. The importance of internal drive gets sidelined a tad. Children get taught the value of hard work, but parents, teachers, and dramas tend to drive home the importance of a formal college education far more frequently. The college will teach equip with the knowledge, the skills, and the credentials to succeed. Not used to or too shy to talk in front of crowds? College can help with that. In fact, college and success are so firmly linked together that when you type college quotes in Google Image Search, most of the quotes shown have nothing to do with college. Here are a few examples: “There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs.” “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” “Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings.” “Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can substitute experience.” The quotes present college as the only path to success, a risky venture that will pay off, and an ambitious act. And college can be all of those things, but we do ourselves and our families a disservice if we don’t realize college is not the only path. Need evidence? Washington State University’s infographic Surprising Starts to Successful Startup lists 13 different entrepreneurs who founded ten amazingly successful companies. 5 of the 13 entrepreneurs never finished college. Kevin Rose (Digg), Mark Zuckerberg (FaceBook), Janus Friis (Skype), Michael Dell (Dell), and Steve Jobs (Apple) all found success without a college degree. The fact that college isn’t the key to success is the secret I wish someone had shared with me before I spent 40K on a technical writing degree that taught me how to write and how to occasionally communicate with other human beings in a professional manner. Three years post-college, I have a pretty good wage at an internet marketing company. An internet marketing company who is more than willing to employ individuals without a college degree. It kills me a little. Do you know how amazing my wage would be if I wasn’t drowning in student loans? I’d be well on my way to swimming in piles of cash like Scrooge McDuck. And with 7 out of 10 college grads in the same student loan trap, individuals consider if they can obtain success without a formal college education. Let’s go through the evaluation process now. Do you want to pursue a career in engineering, law, or medicine? College is the only option. Formal education will prevent you from operating with faulty knowledge, potentially botching very serious life-changing trials, or constructing an unsafe bridge. Do you have the money to attend college? College can be a time of exploration. You have the money, why not take classes. Some of them might reveal a new passion. Historically, you’ve thrived when expected to utilize textbooks or other resources to teach yourself. When attending college, you have professors and your fellow students to teach you complicated concepts. Without college, there is a higher chance you will not have peers or mentors to help you grasp the concepts you might need to succeed. Do you have the internal drive and dedication to pursue your dream? Will you continually pinpoint new skills to learn and new opportunities to pursue while holding down a full-time job? Do you have the willpower to dedicate three, four or five hours to improving yourself? Or will you put off learning about CSS or proper writing technique to watch the latest episode of Arrow? The ability to learn and the willpower to persevere are hard to cultivate and hold on to. And that is partially why our society believes that college is often the best option. College is like a booster pack. Professors, faculty, and students offer support to individuals who might struggle with learning the skills necessary to succeed. They will pound the information into your head over and over and over again if necessary. They will give you oral assignments to help you shake your discomfort of public speaking. And they will offer tests, disappointed looks, and failing grades in angry red ink to motivate you to succeed. In a society filled with distractions and fun activities, college is the safe path. Without that booster pack, many might not have the motivation to do what’s necessary to succeed. I’m not sure if I would have had the confidence in myself, the communication skills, or the self-restraint to continually improve myself without college, but I do know that it can be done. How well do you think you’d fare without a formal college education? Guest Author Bio: Samantha Stauf is an introvert who spends her time reading, working to develop a freelance career, and wondering why she sunk herself into student loan debt when she’s surrounded by successful people who never attended college. You can find her on Twitter with the handle @Samstauf. Do you know what your next career step is?   Many people don’t. I want to help you accelerate your career by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my eBook on how to construct your Career SMART Goals â€" that will help you put together your actions and keep you accountable.   Get your copy now and start your action plan today: CLICK HERE Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â€" dedicated to unleash your professional potential.

Simple but Powerful Test Taking Strategies Part 2

Simple but Powerful Test Taking Strategies Part 2 GRE/MAT Graduate School Blog In part one of our “Common Test Taking Strategies” series, we noted that strategy is an intrinsic part of preparing for standardized tests, and that without the proper strategies even the most advanced students find themselves performing below their full potential. We discussed several proven test taking strategies, including using official test prep materials produced by the same company administering the exam (i.e., the Real ACT Prep Guide if you’re taking the ACT), focusing on what the question is actually asking, scanning all potential answers before choosing one, assuming nothing when deciding which answer is best, and making abstractions concrete. In part two, we’ll cover five additional test taking strategies: Reading and retention “pauses” for long reading comprehension passages Answering easy questions first Time management Providing overly structured responses Test “mentality” Reading Retention During reading comprehension sections, when you encounter a particularly long passage, pause after each section to quickly summarize the preceding paragraph in a single sentence. This will help you to internalize the main ideas as your progress through the reading, rather than reaching the end only to realize you retained very little of what you’ve just read Answer the Easy Questions First As tests are timed, rather than spending a lot of time struggling with a hard question, skip it and use this time to answer many easier questions, coming back to it if you have time. This simply allows you to answer more questions correctly, which will boost your score. Note, however, that not all tests allow you to use this strategy. For example, the GMAT is “computer adaptive” and only lets you move on once you answer a given question. To help you visualize this scenario; if you were picking apples and you only had 5 minutes to pick as many apples of possible, would you waste time climbing a ladder in an attempt to reach fruit on the tallest branches or would you remain firmly on the ground where apples are in plain sight and reach? Managing Your Time Standardized tests produce time pressure, and the need to answer questions both quickly and correctly can be quite anxiety inducing. Utilizing a time tool to pace yourself on these exams has been shown to improve time management while simultaneously lowering anxiety. Time management used in tandem with previous tips on answering easy questions first or reading the questions first in reading comprehension can prove beneficial. However, a relentless need to check your watch should not create another layer of anxiety. Don’t get bogged down in keeping a specific pace-per-question and looking to the clock incessantly, time management is most beneficial once you learn the art of balance. Don’t consult your time tool too often or infrequently. It is most constructive to recognize if you are ahead, on time, or behind schedule and to modify your pace accordingly. If you get accustomed to working at an almost uncomfortably swift pace, once you encounter tougher questions you have padded your time a bit by working quickly and can spend a little more time on the most challenging questions. Give a Structured Response The Writing section can trip-up even the best, most well equipped writers. Contrary to what you may believe, this not the time for complex writing. It is more beneficial for you to write succinctly and in a highly structured fashion. This accomplishes a couple of things; structure helps you organize your thoughts, ensuring you write clearly and concisely. Giving a structured response also helps your grader follow your train of thought/argumentation, ultimately leading to a higher score. If you attempt to write a complex essay under the time constraints of the test, you may simply not have enough time to flesh-out your point and provide adequate examples. Similarly, graders only spend a few minutes on each test, without structure, an essay is hard to follow and this lack of clarity will assuredly kill your score. Keep it simple; be sure to provide a clear thesis (this is the most important - what are you arguing?), introduce your idea/stance, explain why, provide examples and conclude. Mentality It’s pretty simple: the better you feel, the better you perform. Be sure that you are your best-self on test day. You should be: well rested and nourished and both physically and mentally,present and poised. Pay attention to your posture and breathing, don’t let nerves get the best of you. Confidence is key, this does not begin on test day, but in the days, weeks and even months leading up to it. In order to get your mind right, you must feel confident in your prep. Give yourself adequate time to prepare; don’t cram, as this only increases anxiety. Your preparation will bolster your confidence come test day. Recognize as you prepare, that there will be times where you feel stressed and possibly overwhelmed. You have to learn to accept these feelings and work to move beyond them, learn from your mistakes and adjust your methods accordingly, putting your full energy into prep. Visualize yourself performing well on the test and the future opportunities that it will bring you. Lisa Alvarado is a Managing Tutor with MyGuru. She is a graduate of the University of Texas (B.A.) Purdue University (M.A.) and is currently obtaining her Ph.D in History from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has worked professionally with university athletics departments tutoring college athletes. Her particular strengths are History, English, Government, Essay Writing, and Public Speaking.