“A journey of one thousand miles begins
with a single step,” said Confucius, a famous, Chinese philosopher in the
history. This quote is well known all over the world for its insightful
meaning. It teaches us that before doing things we should set our destination
and then walk towards it a step at a time-- I mean a step at a time. Likewise,
in university student life, it is critically important to note that ones can
master their knowledge and attain their goal if they are not those who do not
have any goal in their lives. Only having set up the goal and started walking
your first step is not enough for you to reach your goal, however. For now,
what is of most important to you is to keep your feet moving persistently
forward despite many obstacles along the way on which you walk. To say this,
there is a question asking that “How can we assure that we are able to reach
our destination, then?” In my viewpoint, it is not too difficult to reach your
dream if you follow the following steps.
1I.
Set
up a clear, concrete goal
Being a university student is like a
warrior who is trying his best in the battle field. In the other word, we can
say that almost all, if not all, of the warriors have simply the same goal
which is to get triumph. They have thoroughly studied the enemies’ whereabouts,
how strong their enemies are, what strategies their enemies use and which one
they should use to protect themselves from being defeated as well as to win
over their enemies, from which location they should attack, and what time is
the most appropriate to start attacking, which all of these I call a concrete
plan of establishing their goals. Without this goal, you and I- I mean we-
believe that they will not have any golden opportunities to successfully defeat
their enemies. Similarly, all of these things, in your university-student life,
will inevitably befall you too. No one can escape this reality which they have
to face. Personally, I asked myself incessantly various questions when I
graduated from high school and started my university life, some of which were
“Why do I decide to step into university? What is my purpose? What do I want to
be after I graduate? Should I choose to study what I love or what I am good
at?” Undoubtedly, I, finally, decided to choose what I love and am also good
at. I chose to be an engineer at Institute of Technology of Cambodia, where I
got scholarship. But I still told myself that it was not enough to study just
only engineering skill due to the fact that there should be at least one more
skill that could help me to be a good engineer and to fit into the competitive
job market. I foresaw that English was so potential that I decided to apply for
the entrance exam at Institute of Foreign Languages, the most famous foreign
language institution in Cambodia, and then I was admitted that year- the same
year I started my engineering field. From that point, I have successfully set
up my future goal. It should be noted that the essential part of being
successful is to be aware of what you want. How about you? Have you established
your future goal yet? If not yet, I recommend you think about it. Your future
is in your hands; grasp it and let it light your way. Believe me or not, a man
without a goal is like a city without electricity and water supplies. Nothing is
worse than this.
2II.
Measure
the distance between the point at which you are and that of your goal
It is generally believed that there is no instrument
used to measure abstract things or it is difficult, if not impossible, to
measure it, but I say we can. Personally, I believe that nothing is impossible
if everything is possible. I acknowledge that scientifically we cannot measure
it but we can do it psychologically. We need neither advance technology nor
high-tech instruments to measure it. We use what we naturally have, and that we
have is our ability to think. Supposed that you are now a freshman at one
university in Phnom Penh, you have three or four more years - or it can be many
years more than this if you are a medical student- to graduate from your
bachelor degree. The point of this example is not only help you foresee how far
your goal is, but you will be also aware of how much effort you have to make in
order that you can reach it if you do not have any faintest idea of what you
are going to do yet. For now the point to remember is that, contrary to what
some people claim, it will be easier for you to be ready to overcome any
difficulties you may face in your academic years. When you have a clear idea of
what might happen to you along the way, which connects your position to your
goal, you are able to handle the problems or to minimize the difficulties.
Frankly, as mentioned earlier, I study in two universities simultaneously, both
of which are challenging majors, so you might wonder how I am able to handle
it. Am I a magic man? No, that can not be. That I know clearly what I might
face in my academic year is the key that help me disclose the armory and take
hold weapons fighting against all of those difficulties and move towards my
goal without let or hindrance. Actually, it may be difficult at first because
you are a newcomer to that world of problems, but I bet you will find it as a
merely challenging game when you know how to wield power over it. Use your smile
to change the world; do not let the world changes your smile. Considering any
difficulties as your companions to your goal is what I recommend you.
3III.
Achieve
your goal
Not all competitors in a sport game get a trophy, so
do university students. It needs commitment. Some people keep moving toward
their goals, doggedly and patiently until they attain them while others
surrender to the problems in the middle of their ways. Broadly speaking, those
people who are successful in reaching theirs are those who are intellectually able
to deal with challenging time. They meet failure but never quit doing what they
aspire to do. Once you have decided to embark on your journey, you should bear
in mind that your destination is where you want to go, no matter how hard it is
to get there. Personally, rarely do I run smoothly on the way I am taking. Time
constraint is the hindrance that hampers me from doing things smoothly. As
mentioned earlier, I am studying in two universities simultaneously. Now
imagine how hard it is to manage the time well. I have to study 11 hours a day.
I have homework and assignment to do. Yet I still can do it as a result of the
fact that I am stubborn to give up and that the
I-would-rather-study-smart-than-study-hard strategy has been inherently placed
in the seat of my brain. Once I fail, I try to stand up again. Because of
I-am-fear-of-regret-than-failure idea, I stay focus on my life goal rather than
spending too much time judging the way other people behind and around me are
doing. “The most successful people are the ones that work on themselves first,”
said Jen Groover, an USANA spokeswoman, and I can’t agree with her more. If we
do not help ourselves first, who will help us? Even if we have someone behind
us waiting to push us up to a safer place, it is still impossible to reach
there if we try not to achieve it by ourselves. Far more than this, as
mentioned above, although you have successfully established your life goal and
been ready to overcome any difficulties that will come to you, it is still
incomplete since you have not reached your destination yet. You have to walk on
it towards your goal, and the means you choose to get there is dependent upon
you. The courses of ones’ life are alike except for the roles they play in
those courses. I, during my academic years, have noticed that some friends of
mine decided to choose the same way as I did, but we have reached different
places because some of them decided to turn backwards and some others were too
appreciative with what they had done; they ignore the fact that the beauty of
success is that it can have many stratum and that they have succeeded is just
the first one. They have crossed a river, but there is a mountain standing in
front of them waiting for them to walk across, and there will be also a desert
waiting for them to pass by. Their actual destinations are still not yet
reached; they need to try more to get there.. In short, the ultimate step of
being successful is trying to achieve your goal.
To
sum up, these three steps, if follow thoroughly and patiently, will enable you
to attain your life goals. Being aware of what you want, being ready to
overcome obstacles, and fighting to get it are the true powers you need to be
successful. You are the one who walks your life, not other people. You may
sometimes feel despaired and other time motivated, but you still can withstand
with any circumstances when you see your purpose. Some people work very hard- I
mean they work very hard but not smart enough- to get success, but still fail
to get it. They even have courage to stand up again, but still can not attain
it. They, as a result, give up. Why? Because they don’t see their purposes;
they don’t have a clear, life goal. John F. Kennedy once said that effort and
courage were not enough without purpose and direction, and I can’t agree with
him more.
“Study without
thought is labor lost, thought without study is perilous.”—Confucius
