Category: COMM 299

COMM 299 has really given me a chance to learn about myself. I had always avoiding thinking about myself because I always thought it would not be too late to do it later. However, perhaps I should have started earlier. I feel like I am behind everyone in terms of experience and involvement.

In the first term, I learned how inarticulate I was. I did not want to go to class every Friday because everyone else in my class was really good at speech. However, I learned that my speaking had gotten better while preparing for and during my interview. I was able to speak for myself a little better. I still have a room to improve though.

What really made me think about myself was writing my cover letter and resume. I learned that I had very little experience. I had hard time filling out one letter-sized page.

I also learned that I am not ready to go out to the world yet. I thought life out of school would not be so much different. Learning about information interviews and networking altered my view in life. I am afraid of the life after university. It made me see the reality. It made me realize how dependent I had been. I always expected my parents to do a lot of things for me on top of financial support.

I learned a lot of negative facts about me through this course. I will work hard to change and become more independent. This summer I will have my first job that will allow me to see how the real world is like and will help me grow.

You cannot say you really tried if you tried as much as others did. That is probably the closest I can translate what a famous Korean lawyer said into English. That really struck me.  While reading his essay, I felt like he was describing me. Self-fulfilling prophesy is the greatest lesson I learned from him. But in order for it to work, you need to put in extra efforts.

In an effort to save time spent on eating for studying, he chopped up his food and mixed everything. As a consequence, he passed three national law related exams in university while others spent years after university for the exams and he was the top graduate from Seoul National University Law School. He is still keeping himself busy by setting high but systematic and detailed goals. But most importantly, he believes in himself.

To be honest, I came to Canada because I thought I couldn’t be successful in Korea. I was actually doing quite well in school, but I was afraid to grow up. I wish I could stay young forever because of  growing responsibilities. As it got closer to the end of my middle school years, I thought I could not go to a prestigious high school. That is why I came to Canada. I thought I could be successful more easily. I know it sounds corny, but I realized nothing in the world was easy. Learning English was very challenging and it still is. I see my friends that were not doing as well as I was academically getting into top universities in Korea and I somewhat regret coming here. It is for sure that they really worked hard in their high school years, but I still am jealous. But I still seek for the easy way out….because my negative thoughts stop me from stepping forward…

I still think that I cannot do anything. Whenever I see job postings of any kind, I feel like I do not qualify for any of them.  I see other people succeeding in those jobs but never see myself. I never get myself out there and adventure. I always stay in my comfort zone. But I know that it is not going to last forever…but I am still so unsure of myself.

Reading the lawyer’s essay really woke me up. I need to try harder in order to be certain of myself. I have been so uncertain of myself because I have not been trying hard enough. If I try harder than others and what I have been doing, I will be able to achieve what I have been thinking as beyond me!!!