Another cup of coffee. That’s what I needed. I’d been working on my thermodynamics homework for.. how long was it now? One more. I had one more problem to solve. As I waited for the fresh cup to brew, I heard something that I only half-noticed: birds chirping. Then it dawned on me that I was hearing the sounds of the early morning. I looked out the window to confirm my fear: The sun was rising. Another all-nighter.
I can say without any doubt or qualification that my graduate-level thermodynamics course was the most challenging class I ever took. On the surface, the concepts weren’t too tricky: what goes in must come out, for example. But the details of that statement? What’s that saying about the devil?
As I looked around the classroom I became certain that I was the least intelligent person in the room. We handed in our assignment; my stack of papers was twice as thick as everyone else’s. How did they solve these so much more efficiently than I?
Maybe I’m not as smart as everyone else and so it’s just going to take me longer.
Except I had three weeks to solve this assignment and I started it after dinner the night before it was due. I wasn’t slowed down by intellectual ability. I was slowed by stress and poor planning.
My grades in college had little to do with my intelligence. On the other hand, they were a fantastic measure of my dedication and ability to manage my time.
This is an extreme case but we do it to ourselves in smaller doses every day.
The issue with learning is that it takes time. Yes, our intellectual ability is a factor in deciding how much. But stronger than that is the influence of circumstance: my problem with that homework assignment was that I started it far too late to leave room for exploration or creativity.
What really slowed me down?
The dozens of things I had prioritized over that assignment for the three weeks before it was due. I had a job. I had friends and a romantic interest. I had activities and clubs and other classes. And I had let every single one of those things become a reason to put off my thermodynamics homework.
Sound familiar?
Then we can help. For the month of March, The Intentional Academy is offering a workshop called Midterm Rehab. The entire experience takes just a few hours to complete, on your schedule. When you’re done you’ll be back in control of your time, money, and career. It’s not too late to make this the best semester of your life!
Visit IntentionalAcademy.com or email rehab@intentionalacademy.com for details!
