You always know whether you really tried. That private knowledge is worth more than whatever the grade said.
STILLNESS
WHAT THIS MEANS
Nobody else can tell the difference between a real attempt and a convincing-looking one, and you always know which it was. A grade measures the output on one particular day with a lot of noise mixed in, while your own knowledge of how much you actually brought is precise and private. That is why a good mark for no work sits strangely and a poor mark after honest effort stings in a different way.
After the next test or game, write down privately whether you really tried, separately from the result. Work on that line rather than the score. The score tends to follow it anyway.
A QUESTION TO SIT WITH
Which grade of yours hid how little or how much you tried?
MORE IN SOLITUDE & SELF-KNOWLEDGE
- Write one page nobody will ever read. Notice how much more honest you are when there’s no audience.
- If a bad comment from a stranger ruins your week, your self-image has its front door unlocked.
- The first night in a new dorm or new city is lonely for a lot of people. It’s not a sign you chose wrong.
Free, with nothing to buy inside it.