4 Ways My Academic Experience Affected My Confidence

Before I started writing this post, I decided to take a big step in improving my confidence by enrolling in a business writing course. One reason for this decision was that school gave me a sense of purpose and hope for the future. I am not where I want to be career-wise. But knowing that I can use education for my future endeavors makes me feel better about myself. To discover what I learned from school and how it affected my confidence, continue reading this post.

How My Academic Experience Affected My Confidence

1. I felt accomplished when I did well on assignments. I remember seeing smiley faces, good grades, and compliments on some of my assignments. Whenever a teacher wrote, "Good job," I felt like I was doing something right. I felt smart. As an adult, I know that my value does not depend on a good grade or a compliment. But the feelings I got from those rewards were nice. Attending a class will give me a similar sense of accomplishment.
2. I needed reminders that bad grades did not make me a failure. While I earned good grades, there were many times when bad grades decreased my self-esteem. When I brought home D's or assignments saying, "Needs improvement," I was afraid I would disappoint my parents. But they comforted me by telling me they knew I was trying. Getting help from my teachers and my parents led me to improve. Knowing that these people were happy to help me made me feel loved and supported.
3. I fell in love with writing and found it to be therapeutic. Feeling stupid and inadequate was exhausting. I needed an outlet, a coping skill to help me unwind. When I was writing, I felt like I could be myself. Stories about acceptance, equality, and love made me eager to see the world and life in a different light. Even though my stories were not reality, they gave me hope. As I got older, I became more interested in enhancing my storytelling skills for real-life events. My childhood outlet led to my passion for writing about mental health. It brought me to my goal of making a career out of writing. No matter what I do professionally, I will always use writing as a form of therapy for myself and others.  
4. I discovered that I wasn't alone in my struggles. During my grade school years, I didn't realize that people struggled with so many different things. Yes, I knew that many children had learning disabilities like mine. But when I noticed that most of my classmates learned quickly, I thought that made them brilliant. I thought that made them better than me. But when I started middle school, I realized there was so much more than intelligence. Girls wanted boys to notice them. They cared about their hair, nails, and weight. Boys wanted to be strong, tall, and manly. By high school, I realized that many other teenagers had issues I didn't know anything about. I also found out that more of them had learning disabilities than I realized. Even though I still envied many of these people for different reasons, I knew that I wasn't alone.

Over the years, I learned that many of my former classmates overcame their struggles. Some who were overweight became personal trainers. Some who were in toxic relationships are now happily married. Some who struggled in math are now accountants. I now have the confidence to excel in my classes. I am proud of my decision to take this step. I'm excited to see an improvement in my skills and confidence.