Generally speaking, most people like to rank themselves as average or above average in terms of intelligence. Realistically, who wants to be less smart than the average person? During my first year of college I quickly realized everyone around me is remarkably smart. My classmates are the kind of people that have a best subject but still perform exceptionally in all other areas of study. They were the kids in high school that had perfect grades without breaking a sweat. And then there's me.
Before college I never significantly doubted my ability to keep up academically, as I easily performed above average in all my classes. The struggle arose when I arrived at college and realized everyone around me was ridiculously qualified and had insanely impressive accomplishments. To give you an example, my current suitemate had a 5.7 GPA in high school and started a charity before college. The only significant thing I did before college was learn how to set up my DVR to record all my weekly shows on time. Imagine my horror when I realized I would have to be taking classes graded on a curve with these A+, gold star students.
I’ve often contemplated the idea of “is it really that bad to be below average at a place where everyone is not only above average compared to the general populous, but exceptional?” Countless people have told me that comparing oneself to others is largely detrimental to self-esteem and does little to foster success. I’ve grown comfortable with the idea that I will never be the brightest student in any of the classes I’ll take during my four years at WashU, because regardless of my class rank at graduation, I can be successful and do well in life.
Sometimes everyone needs to be reminded that there is more in life than being the best, sometimes you just need to be the best you can be. Very cliché, I know, but I think it’s important for people to let these words sink in. Trust me, the entirety of freshman year I beat myself up over the fact that I sucked at physics. Math and physics are my worst subjects, (which really sucks because they’re my dad’s best subjects, which is a whole other can of worms I’ll touch on in another article). I hated physics so much I managed to completely avoid it during high school (I’m not kidding, check my transcript). I was so clouded by the thought that I was terrible at physics that it began seeping into my opinion on my general self-esteem. My logic was that, “I’m bad at physics, so I must be bad at everything”, which is a generalization so broad that it’s illogical, but I firmly believed it at the time. I’ve since stepped back from the situation and analyzed it a different way. I will eventually have to take physics again at some point, but for now I’m focusing on subjects I feel more confident about. We all have to remember that everyone is better at different things, and sometimes we will run across people who are exceptional at everything-- but we can’t let those people ruin our opinions of ourselves.
Had I never accepted the fact that it’s ok to be below average, I would still be back where I was freshman year: huddled under my comforter in the safety of my room and binge-watching Netflix while dropping classes to allow for this lifestyle. I started the semester with 15 credits and ended it with 9. A lot of people don’t realize the significance someone’s emotional and mental health plays on their academic performance. College can be one of the most overwhelming times in someone’s life, with the bombardment of many new experiences and challenges all at the same time. It can be difficult with all of this when you struggle with self-confidence in any realm, whether it is academic or social.
So the whole point of this rambling article was, if you feel like you’re the only person out there that’s struggling while everyone else seems fine, trust me, you’re not. I was right there less than a year ago, researching other universities and filling out transfer applications, but now I’m doing swimmingly. There is hope. The important part is not to let the seemingly greater success of others outshine your hard work. The best thing you can do is stop trying to compete with others and instead compete with yourself to see how far you can go.
