Understanding Yourself

Success: “the accomplishment of an aim or purpose”¹.  Such a simple definition for an often complex and fraught idea.  What is success for you? Are you striving for a goal or achievement based on external measures of success? Or are your goals set based on the sense of internal gratification of the process of learning something new and navigating a new challenge? These are not easy questions to answer but are essential to think about when considering what college will mean to you.  As advisors, we encourage students to look beyond just the grades and external feedback and examine their interests, preferences, values, and long-term goals as they consider a broader definition for personal success.  What path will bring you the most joy, the most satisfaction?  How can you create a life that you don’t want to escape from? Is the path that you are on one that is in alignment with your likes and dislikes?  Will you be qualified to get a job or start a career that is fulfilling?  In this first chapter, we will challenge you to assess your current path and consider your answers to these questions to help you define, or redefine, how you will measure your success in college and in life.

1.1 What is your Why? Purpose & Identity

Earning a college degree is often considered the ultimate step in learning and a necessary step towards pursuing a career. Questions about college and your future adult life were probably sprinkled throughout your adolescence: “What do you want to be when you grow up?” “What is your plan for after high school?” “What will you major in?” Preparing for college in high school through Advanced Placement and dual credit college classes is becoming more and more popular, and attending college directly following high school graduation is often/sometimes seen as the only path to take. The reality is that there are many different definitions of success and paths to reaching our goals. Most require us to overcome obstacles or make unexpected, tough decisions.

Transitioning from high school to college can be a much bigger step for students than they expect. They may consider that moving away from their hometown, living on their own, or making new friends will be the biggest changes and obstacles to overcome. By the time a student reaches college, they have attended many years of school, and therefore may expect to keep operating on the same beliefs and habits about learning and succeeding academically as they had before. But coming to college presents opportunities and challenges that many students do not anticipate and as a result, they may feel unprepared to handle them.

Who am I? What are my values and beliefs? My strengths and weaknesses? Do I really want to attend this school? Attend college at all? Am I excited about working in fields that are connected  with my major, or did I choose my major because that’s what other people thought I would be good at? I want to earn my degree, but why can I not seem to get myself to class, or to do the homework? It can be stressful to grapple with these questions, but ultimately it can help us examine our intentions and motivations for attending college and getting the most out of our time there.

If you, too, have struggled to stay diligent in courses and committed to your college experience, take some time to consider your “why”. Why are you here? Why are you choosing to pursue a college degree? You may have never considered your why beyond, “Because that’s what people do after high school” or “successful people have college degrees.” If your answers to those questions are, “to get a college degree, to get a better job, to make more money,” then challenge yourself to think deeper about the question. Some of the barriers to academic success you could be encountering may be because you have not considered what you are doing in college.

It’s easy to compare your own college experience with the experiences of those around you, of your parents or older family members, or even the experiences of characters in your favorite movies and television shows. When considering your why, think only about you and your motivations and goals. Examining your intrinsic motivations, the things you’re curious about, passionate about, and that you get a great deal of enjoyment and personal growth from, are most likely the things you should be pursuing long term. Keeping the why at the forefront of your decision-making process and long-term planning can make a huge difference in maintaining motivation and connection to course material.

Recognizing your ‘why’ is an important step in identifying your path to success². The road to getting there may be different than you initially anticipated. It could veer far from the version of success you were introduced to in your younger years. It could also take you longer to get there than you hoped. What matters in the end is that you reached the destination, even if the journey did not align perfectly with what others may define as “successful.”

1.2 Values

When observed closely, values can shape multiple aspects of your life, from everyday decisions to long-term goals and ambitions. Even when not practiced actively, values can have a passive role, triggering aspirations and impacting motivation. Just as they may affect various areas of your life, they also play an important role in your college education. Have you ever wondered how your decision to pursue a college education aligns with your values?

Below you will find a general list of values. It is by no means comprehensive and exclusive. You may recognize other ideals you hold dear and prioritize above others. Many of these may align directly with your current effort. If you praise ‘accomplishment’, ‘independence’, or ‘expertise’, the college experience may provide you the environment to focus on these. But there are additional values that may conflict or divide your attention from academic success. Areas such as ‘leisure’, ‘family’, and ‘travel’ may end up competing for your time and attention in the middle of a semester.

Your values will impact your college experience and, to a point, may dictate some of the environments and encounters you will be exposed to. One of the common reasons students enroll in college is to actively experience new things. Whether it is creating a new social group, trying new activities, living on their own, or beginning to develop their professional career, values will dictate many of the decisions students make regularly. Recognizing what your values are and which one(s) you will want to uphold can help make decisions a bit simpler down the road. You are constantly making decisions revolving around your college experience. For example, your major, whether to attend full-time or part-time, living on campus, or taking student loans, are all decisions that may be centered around your values. Fully understanding them, particularly those that may have a long-term impact, can help you make decisions that serve you.

1.3 Strengths/Weaknesses

Our level of self-awareness and past experiences shape our personal views, particularly when thinking of our performances in school. When students struggle academically, they tend to shape their situation into a duality – these are my strengths and these are my weaknesses. While it is important to understand areas of improvement and areas of academic success, observing the world in such a black-and-white reality can be counterproductive, too. We will spend time discussing the role of mindset in academics in a future chapter. For the time being, it is worth noting that putting limits on your abilities can make it difficult to improve on them. Weaknesses are often thought of as negative or they can bring shame to individuals to the point we prefer not to think about them and ignore them completely. Additionally, if you believe a weakness is insurmountable or cannot be developed, you are less likely to attempt to improve in that area.

Reframing weaknesses is a common strategy to try and implement. At times, we can over-focus on our deficiencies to the point that we do not realize all the good traits that we have and the growth we have experienced. As previously mentioned, most people consider weaknesses to be negative. When analyzing yours, consider why they are negative and evaluate whether there are positive aspects to them. Let’s consider an example. An area that many people struggle with is public speaking. In turn, we can reframe such a challenge as having the ability to be an intimate communicator, being able to work with small groups, and having the opportunity to connect with your audience at a more personal level.  Reframing your weaknesses serves two purposes. First, it is a form of self-awareness. It allows you to better understand things about yourself. Second, it can lead to the discovery of other aspects of your life, helping you recognize ways to cope with or overcome your weaknesses. Consider 2-3 of your so-called weaknesses and think about ways in which you can evaluate them differently.

Personal Preferences

In considering who you are, it is also important to think about your personal preferences.  Personal preferences–your likes and dislikes–can have a profound impact on the way you make decisions and how you behave in certain environments.

In the context of higher education, personal preferences impact the decisions you make about the courses that you take, your choice of study environment, your living situation, even your motivation to seek out help from campus resources.

Think about what kind of classes you like to take:

• Do you prefer a large lecture hall with many students or a small discussion group?
• Do you prefer to read textbooks or PowerPoint slides?
• Do you learn in a way that is hands-on, through visual examples?
• Do you prefer individual assignments or group work?

Taking time to reflect and identify your personal academic preferences can help you make choices that will have an impact on academic outcomes.

Understanding your preferences is also important when you consider your long term goals, particularly in identifying possible jobs or career paths. Some of your preferences related to your academic career will be relevant in choosing a job, but there are many others to consider:

• Do you like to work on a team or work independently?
• Do you prefer a set work schedule or flexible hours?
• Do you like to travel or stay close to home?³

While you may prefer one approach, it does not mean that the other alternatives are not useful or effective. Revisiting the previous example, you may be a wonderful communicator in a small group setting. However, that doesn’t mean you cannot practice and improve your public speaking skills. As you evaluate your strengths, weaknesses, and preferences, do you recognize areas of improvement or situations in which you can experience growth?

As you consider what “achieving success” means to you, creating opportunities and making choices that are in alignment with your likes and dislikes can lead to greater satisfaction and enjoyment. As you reflect on your “ideal future” consider how your academic choices, including pursuing a two- or four-year degree, your major or plan of study, and even the cost of your education, are in support of your preferences and overall life satisfaction.⁴

Career Development

Career Development describes a range of different practices.  According to Watts (n.d.), career development is the lifelong process of managing progression in learning and work. The quality of this process significantly determines the nature and quality of individuals’ lives: the person they become, the sense of purpose they have, and the income at their disposal. It also determines the social and economic contribution they make to the communities and societies of which they are part.  Career Development begins when we are very young and are exposed to many different jobs and professions in our everyday life, and it is discussed within the context of this chapter because it is directly linked to your educational goals and objectives.

The choice to pursue higher education often comes with questions posed by well-meaning friends and relatives:  “What do you want to do when you graduate?” or “What are you going to do with your degree?”  Identifying a career path can be an important source of external motivation during your college career.  Career development starts with self-actualization and self-assessment of one’s interests and capabilities⁵. When you allow your understanding of yourself to influence your approach to learning and your choices as a student, it will necessarily help inform your career path.

An essential aspect of career development is the identification of personal preferences and acquired skills. Throughout your education, you will likely encounter courses or subject matter that are not that interesting to you. As a result, you may sense your motivation waning and fail to see the value in that particular area of study.  This challenge presents many growth opportunities.  It is important to reflect on why you aren’t enjoying the class and then make a decision in light of that awareness. You may decide to change your major, as a result, you may decide you need to develop skills to master the material, or you may decide that you need to develop a further understanding of how you learn and what aspects of learning are most enjoyable to you. This is essential in the career development process.

Additionally, when you sense your motivation waning, consider this: employers are looking for job applicants who have transferable or “durable skills” that will enable them to be successful in a variety of fields. While you may not feel as if the specific course material applies to your future job, major, or area of interest, the durable skills that you are developing will always be relevant.

Durable skills include, but are by no means limited to:

• Dependable, punctual, and self-motivated (showing up on time, ready to work, not being a liability)
• Strong time management
• Enthusiastic and positive attitude
• Committed
• Willing to learn (lifelong learner)
• Able to accept constructive criticism
• Strong problem-solving skills
• Adaptable and willing to take on new challenges
• A team player
• Strong communication and writing skills
• Critical Thinking
• Ethical and honest

These skills are invaluable. Matthew Sanders in “Becoming a Learner”⁶ notes how employers often hire college students outside of their respective disciplines, putting emphasis on critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity, and personal capacity.  As you develop these through all of your academic experiences, you will take them with you wherever your career path may lead. Hopefully, this understanding of the continuous development of durable skills can help you identify motivation in your coursework.

As you consider the jobs or career that may be fulfilling to you and match your skills and interests, you may find it helpful to review some of the resources in the appendix of this book.  There you will find information on key differences between a “job” and a “career,” along with a “Five Step Process for Choosing a Career.”

As a final note, please remember that if you have no idea what job, profession, or career resonates with you, that is ok, too.  While college is a place to build both hard (tangible and specific) and soft (durable) skills, it is also a place for self-discovery;  a place where you can assess your values, your interests, and the life you want to create for yourself.  Experiment, learn from your mistakes, and continue to reflect on your experience. Use every opportunity and every misstep as a chance for growth.

General Self-Assessment and Reflection

This chapter has offered many reflection questions, tools, and opportunities to assess your values, interests, and skills.  As this section comes to a close, we urge you to engage in the following activity:

• Choose one of the assessments highlighted in this chapter or available in the resource section of this book.  Many students find value in completing the MBTI or LASSI as a first assessment.
• Review your results and then spend some time writing about the following:
  • What aspect(s) of your results stand out to you the most? Why?
  • What are your areas of strength that will help you succeed in college?
  • What are your areas of growth/opportunity that you can focus on?
  • Do you think this assessment accurately represents you as a student? Why or why not?

1.4 Non-Traditional Paths to Success

Now that you’ve spent some time reflecting on your values, interests, preferences, and personal attributes, what do you do with that information? How do you integrate this knowledge and self-awareness into your life?  First, consider where you are right now–what path you are on and consider if that path is in agreement with the life you WANT and WHO you are.  If you believe you are currently on the path to success, whatever that means for you–great! If not, and you are feeling unfulfilled or unsuccessful in your current trajectory–great! Now is the time to make a change.

Change could mean many different things.  Perhaps you are a full-time student in a traditional four-year program–maybe you take some time away from school or you scale back your academic studies to part-time and focus on work,  an internship,  volunteer activities,  family, or anything that is in line with your values and interests.  Maybe you realize your current major isn’t actually what you are truly interested in–so make a change.  Maybe through this process, you acknowledge that you are ok taking out loans to pay for full-time school because your career goals after graduation will allow you to comfortably pay back those loans. Perhaps you consider that success may simply mean acknowledging what obstacles you are currently facing and determining a path to overcome them–no matter how small or large those challenges may be⁷.

All this is to say that we hope, through this process, and by reading the subsequent chapters, you are able to honestly assess what success means for YOU and make changes to live in accordance with your definition of success.

One additional word of advice–before making any changes, connect with a campus resource, whether that be a faculty member or academic advisor, to talk through your ideas, understand all of your options, and help outline the next steps.  We are all here to help you on your path to success.

Citations

1. Dictionary.com
2. Sinek, Simon. Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. Penguin Business, 2019.
3. Planning Your Future: “Personality & Preferences”. University of California- Berkeley. https://career.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/pdf/Plan/PersonalityChecklist2.pdf
4. Collinson, Eric. A survey of elementary students’ learning style preferences and academic success. Contemporary Education. Vol. 71, 4. 2000.
5. Career Development. MBA Skool. https://www.mbaskool.com/business-concepts/human-resources-hr-terms/1779-career-development.html.
6. Sanders, Matthew L. Becoming a Learner: Realizing the Opportunity of Education. Macmillan Learning Curriculum Solutions, 2018.
7. MacIntosh, Andrew S., et al. “Youth Definitions of Success, Obstacles to Success, and How Significant Others Can Help: Providing Youth a Voice in Their Own Development.” International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, vol. 25, no. 1, 2019, pp. 491–504., doi:10.1080/02673843.2019.1674166.