Secrets of the Most Successful College Students

College-admission letters go out this month, and most recipients (and their parents) will place great importance on which universities said yes and which said no. A growing body of evidence, however, suggests that the most significant thing about college is not where you go, but what you do once you get there. Historian and educator Ken Bain has written a book on this subject, What the Best College Students Do.  that draws a road map for how students can get the most out of college, no matter where they go.

As Bain details, there are three types of learners: surface, who do as little as possible to get by; strategic, who aim for top grades rather than true understanding; and deep learners, who leave college with a real, rich education. Bain then introduces us to a host of real-life deep learners: young and old, scientific and artistic, famous or still getting there. Although they each have their own insights, Bain identifies common patterns in their stories:

Pursue passion, not A’s. When he was in college, says the eminent astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, he was “moved by curiosity, interest and fascination, not by making the highest scores on a test.” As an adult, he points out, “no one ever asks you what your grades were. Grades become irrelevant.” In his experience as a student and a professor, says Tyson, “ambition and innovation trump grades every time.”

Get comfortable with failure. When he was still a college student, comedian Stephen Colbert began working with an improvisational theater in Chicago. “That really opened me up in ways I hadn’t expected,” he tells Bain. “You must be O.K. with bombing. You have to love it.” Colbert adds, “Improvisation is a great educator when it comes to failing. There’s no way you are going to get it right every time.”

Make a personal connection to your studies. In her sophomore year in college, Eliza Noh, now a professor of Asian-American studies at California State University at Fullerton, took a class on power in society: who has it, how it’s used. “It really opened my eyes. For the first time in my life, I realized that learning could be about me and my interests, about who I was,” Noh tells Bain. “I didn’t just listen to lectures, but began to use my own experiences as a jumping-off point for asking questions and wanting to pursue certain concepts.”

Read and think actively. Dean Baker, one of the few economists to predict the economic collapse of 2008, became fascinated in college by the way economic forces shape people’s lives. His studies led him to reflect on “what he believed and why, integrating and questioning,” Bain notes. Baker says: ”I was always looking for arguments in something I read, and then pinpointing the evidence to see how it was used.”

Ask big questions. Jeff Hawkins, an engineer who created the first mobile computing device, organized his college studies around four profound questions he wanted to explore: Why does anything exist? Given that a universe does exist, why do we have the particular laws of physics that we do? Why do we have life, and what is its nature? And given that life exists, what’s the nature of intelligence? For many of the subjects he pursued, Bain notes, “there was no place to ‘look it up,’ no simple answer.”

Cultivate empathy for others. Reyna Grande, author of the novels Across a Hundred Mountains and Dancing with Butterflies, started writing seriously in her junior year in college. “Writing fiction taught Reyna to empathize with the people who populated her stories, an ability that she transferred to her life,” Bain notes: “As a writer, I have to understand what motivates a character, and I see other people as characters in the story of life,” Grande says. “When someone makes mistakes, I always look at what made them act the way they do.”

Set goals and make them real. Tia Fuller, who later became an accomplished saxophone player, began planning her future in college, envisioning the successful completion of her projects. ”I would keep focused on the light at the end of the tunnel, and what that accomplishment would mean,” she tells Bain. “That would help me develop a crystalized vision.”

Find a way to contribute. Joel Feinman, now a lawyer who provides legal services to the poor, was set on his career path by a book he read in college: The Massacre at El Mozote, an account of a 1981 slaughter of villagers in El Salvador. After writing and staging a campus play about the massacre, and traveling to El Salvador, Feinman “decided that I wanted to do something to help people and bring a little justice to the world.”

6 Simple Self Improvement Tips

You will find yourself achieving new levels of fulfillment by incorporating them into your daily life. If personal development and growth interests you, there is a good chance you are constantly looking for reliable techniques that will stimulate your progression. Any tactics that can kick start your personal growth and show you fast results would be fondly looked upon.

After years of study in the self improvement arena, I have found the following strategies to be invaluable. Any chance I can give back to others that have that same thirst to better themselves; I consider it a privilege knowing that I was once in the exact same place.

Expect to Achieve

While many think that the majority of people who are successful in the world are smarter than they are, that simply is not the case. The real secret here is to expect to win before it has ever happened. I can’t stress enough how important this is. Your mindset has a hugely powerful effect on whether or not you will attain your dreams and goals.

Note that I didn’t say you need knowledge to win, because the fact of the matter is having a bold and determined expectancy goes a lot further than actually having the knowledge. The knowledge will come with conviction and persistence.

Keep a Daily Journal

You will be hard pressed to find an ultra successful person who doesn’t adopt a personal daily journal. We can’t keep track of everything that passes through our minds and this is when a journal comes in extremely handy. Whenever something strikes you as something you would like to do, accomplish or feel passionate about, get in the habit of writing it down. It will give you a sense of self-awareness and will skyrocket your confidence in yourself.

Meditation

Known to be a fabulous stress reliever not to mention the other health benefits like aiding in digestion and even slowing your heart rate, this is one of the most overlooked of the techniques even though it could very well be one of the most important. It drastically helps in avoiding worries and anxiety because it clears your mind of all the negative thoughts useless thoughts that we all feel from time to time. Your sleep will be more restful and it will help you make the most of the other techniques shared here.

Write Action Plans & Specific Goals

The simple act of putting pen to paper has a dramatic effect on clarifying your goals and aids with the expectancy I talked about earlier. This habit of writing down goals is mandatory if you want to actually achieve those goals. Dreaming is one thing, doing is quite another. All of these written goals should lead you to your ultimate long term goal and perfect life.

Daily Affirmations

Getting in the habit of reading aloud positive affirmations each and every day will lierally change your character, your personality and ultimately change the actions you take every day of your life. I have found that reading these out loud when I get up in the morning and before I go to bed at night to work very well. You can’t help but change your inner self by doing this religiously every day.

Be Well Rounded

All areas of your life are affected by all other areas of your life. By that I mean, if you have bad relationships for example, your finances and even your health will suffer also. Problems in your relationships, your health or finances will zap the necessary energy to make the most out of all of these areas of your life. Personal development and success will become much more difficult as a result.

In order to accomplish great things, living a balanced life is so important, a life of great emotional fortitude, financial security and physical stamina. Be well rounded in all of these areas and you will inevitably reap the rewards.

To great success in your life!

Ten Ways to Take Positive Risks in Life

Here are the top ten ways to take positive risks in your life (And what will happen if you do)

1. Decide what you want and then define and take the biggest risk you can think of which will move you closer to your goal. (Taking action towards doing what you want to do is not a risk)

2. Make a step by step plan towards an important goal and define risks you MUST take to move forward. (Living a status quo life will not change any situation for which you are stuck)

3. Ask yourself what is possible and then make a list. (Most people spend too much time pondering what things won't work and as a result justify why taking no action is the best choice)

4. Take action- do something unusual to create movement towards a goal which is important to you. (Like a set of domino's, all the choices from the past which no longer fit you will fall down)

5. Only strive to accomplish a few really important things each day. (Life isn’t about having the biggest to-do list) but making progress and living a life which is most important to the person living it!)

6. Work to develop the relationships which matter to you. (Don’t be afraid to terminate the relationships which no longer work for you or be afraid to pursue new ones which nourish you)

7. Re-define yourself by WHO you are vs. WHAT you do. (Job titles are for the human resources staff)

8. Define and live your perfect vocational day. (Recreate a life which works better for you vs. one which works better for some else who really doesn't care about your welfare)

9. Be your own best friend. (Easier said than done since people tend to be their own worst critics)

10. Give yourself permission to take risks in your life. (Otherwise, you will wait a very long time and then wonder later why change took so long)

Taking risks towards what you want in your life is all relevant. What might seem like a big risk to one person might not seem that risky to another. Happiness in life, work and relationships knows you were not afraid to try something new in your life when the status quo no longer worked. Take a few risks towards what you want- Your life will be richer from the inside out!

I'll be cheering you on as you go!

Set Goals for Academic Success - 5 Simple Steps

      Most parents realize that helping their children set goals is important, but few realize that not all goals are created equal. While some goals can indeed empower children to get better grades and achieve academic success, others can actually discourage children or cause them to become frustrated and overwhelmed. 

      How do you know the difference, then, between a goal that inspires and one that is counterproductive? Follow the five steps below to ensure that the goals your child is aspiring to are ones that contribute to his or her long-term academic and professional success:

      1. Inspire Dreams and Translate them into Long-Term Goals – When children are small, they’re often asked what they want to be when they grow up. Parents laugh lightheartedly as their tots talk about becoming ballerinas and astronauts. As children get older, however, the question becomes more serious. Too often, parents begin to discourage their children’s lofty dreams or assume that their own dreams for their children are more suitable. Unfortunately, this often causes children to become complacent and lose the passion they once had for their futures. As youngsters enter middle and high school, it’s important to help them revisit their dreams and begin thinking seriously about their personal and professional goals. Talk to your child about her future openly and without judgment. Allow her to dream as big as she wishes, and encourage her to jot down several long-term goals she hopes to achieve as an adult. This practice can be a really powerful motivator. Once children see the connection between their dreams and achieving academic success, they’re much more likely to put in the effort to make better grades. 

      2. Transform Long-Term Goals Into S.M.A.R.T. Goals – An important part of the goal setting process is determining whether the goals are S.M.A.R.T. In this case, S.M.A.R.T. refers to Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant, and Time-bound. In order for goals to have the intended effect of inspiring kids toward academic success and personal/professional achievement, all goals must meet these basic criteria. Go through your child’s long-term goal list, and together, decide which goals to keep, which to modify, and which to discard. Then, work with this refined list to transform these long-term goals into their short-term S.M.A.R.T. counterparts. In essence, the more specific the goal is, the more targeted your child’s focus will be on achieving this goal. In addition, goals that are measurable tend to be much more satisfying as children can clearly see their progress toward achieving the goal. Furthermore, actionable goals can be easily broken down into specific action steps, making them much easier to implement, and therefore more achievable. You should also ensure that each of your child’s short-term S.M.A.R.T. goals is relevant to them and compatible with their long-term goals and dreams. This will ensure that your child is working toward his eventual success efficiently and consistently. Finally, be sure that each of the short-term goals you’ve identified is time-bound. This means that it has a definite starting and ending point, so that you child doesn’t fall prey to procrastination. 

      3. Make an Action Plan for Each Short-Term Goal – The next step in setting goals for academic success is to help your child develop an action plan for each of the short-term goals she’s set for herself. For example, if your child has decided that she wants to make better grades in English, then her action plan may consist of daily tasks such as reading for an hour each day, joining a study group that focuses on reading and writing, and spending an extra 30 minutes of study time on this particular subject each night. Once this plan is set in place, encourage your child to post it in a place where she will see it every day and commit to completing these tasks on a daily basis. You will also need to come up with a plan to ensure accountability. Ideally, your child will hold herself accountable for completing these daily tasks, but she may need a little help from you or another adult, at least initially. 

      4. Monitor Progress and Adjust Goals Regularly – Once you and your child have set some goals in place for his academic success and aligned them with a daily action plan, you’ll need to make a schedule for monitoring his progress and adjusting goals as needed. Whether it’s biweekly or once a month, decide upon specific dates when you will meet together and talk about how the action plan is progressing. As you monitor these plans, discuss whether or not the goals need to be adjusted. If your child has met a goal on the list, for instance, then it may be time to set a new goal to encourage continual progress. On the other hand, if your child is making little progress despite remaining committed to his daily action plan, then you may need to reevaluate how realistic the goal is and modify it accordingly. Although it’s understandable that you want your child to make much better grades right away, setting the bar too high can be counterproductive. Your child should be challenged but not intimidated by his or her goals
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      5. Reward Success – Finally, as your child works hard to make better grades, accomplish her short-term goals, and ultimately achieve her academic success, be sure to appropriately praise and reward her efforts. Positive reinforcement can keep your child motivated to continue her efforts. Whether you decide to grant her a special privilege, give her a tangible reward, or simply pat her on the back for a job well done, be sure to take time out from your busy schedule to stop and recognize her triumphs.

      Goal setting is undoubtedly one of the key elements necessary for a child to achieve academic success. Natural intelligence and even effective study skills can only go so far without defined goals and a plan to achieve them. When helping your child develop goals for his present and future, be sure that these goals are S.M.A.R.T. and also ensure that you regularly monitor his progress. Don’t forget to provide plenty of positive reinforcement to keep him motivated as he follows his own unique path to success.