Football coaches and I do not agree on a lot of things; that is something that I learned quickly in high school. In middle school, the athletics department catered towards the students to get a feel for playing a variety of sports, and the top athletes were always given priority over those who were not as successful. During those years, I won a few awards, even scored a few touchdowns, but mostly found companionship and mentors with my coaches (I still keep in touch with them to this day). Now, high school: that was an alien species of its own. I think what bothered me the most about playing sports for Austin High was the coaching staff. Maybe it was because I wasn’t the best anymore, but I will give myself some credit and say that the respect they demanded was not something that they encouraged much from themselves. I still have the haunting memory of being called out by the head coach in front of the entire football department because I aspired to do other things besides catch footballs, crush opponents, and drink beer. I should preface this by saying that the hours that I spent with these people taught me a lot about the person I did NOT want to become. As I said, for the majority of the time I found no consolation in talking with the coaching staff at my high school, however there is one occasion that I remember actually finding a hint of something reminiscent of truth.
Before classes began for my freshman year, I spent the summer in a speed and fitness camp put on by whom else but the freshman football coaches – granted I had no association with them thus far. It was in the keynote speech of this training camp that still inspires me throughout my day. The same man, Coach Mueller[1] (pictured left) who would later refer to me as the “riff-raff” of the freshma
n class, told the attendees of the conditioning camp to never allow someone the opportunity of letting you know how much potential you have, fore it only means that you are not performing to your best ability. Potential was a taboo only in reference to failure. I have encountered this mantra again, four years later, as a freshman in architecture school where my Design I professor insists that we steer our mind away from thinking arbitrarily.
The intention of this essay is not to find faults within the people who have cause troubling times for me in the past, but rather the opposite. I must be able to take away a greater good from these people. I must surmount what potential I have, and use it to its fullest extent. I must ground myself by encountering others and the diversity of the world. I must focus on the goal that I have set for myself: Learn and Experience. Defy Stereotypes. By doing so, I hope to find success and fulfillment in my personal quest for greatness.
The fundamental goal or attribute that I strive to obtain is to make an impact on the world. I aspire to do so by not succumbing to the toxins of modern society: prejudice, egocentricity, elitism, manipulation, ambition. The relationships that I have created with others, and each individual impact that they have had on me has largely contributed to this demand, and made me realize why life is worth living. As Joseph Cambell in The Merchant of Venice says, “you begin to meet people who are in your field of bliss… find where it is, and don’t be afraid to follow it.”
Being so young, it is hard to try and specify what it is exactly that I would like to spend 
my life[2] doing, but I have many ideas all which wrap around the familiar theme of using each of my strengths in composite to the other in efforts to be the most adequately adept person for whatever may come. With that I feel that there is a strong pull from a plethora of areas which we have encountered already. I know that (for me) success is defined not by a single plan of action, but I will only be able to dwell in my accomplishments knowing I have truly utilized my resources to the best of my ability.
The expedition for making my impact has already begun. I like to think that the people that I have positively affected the people that I have come in contact with throughout the first 19 years of my life granted not all might feel that way. The foundation of my ideals was laid by my parents for the greater part of my juvenile education, though in the last four years I feel that I have become to make a voice for myself, and become an individual. Moreover, living in Austin has greatly influenced my understanding of others.
Most importantly, I have started to recognize the peculiarities in others who may not follow my ideals, and have given them the right to that belief. Albert Einstein said that the most “valuable thing in the pageant of human life… [is] the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it alone creates the noble and the sublime”. The hardest thing about bein
g a leader today is to create a space to emphasize the individual.[3] So often we are bogged down in the fog of difference that we tend to forget the importance of this diversity. I overhear conversations in the cafeteria of the superficial nature that plagues the adolescent mind, and only inhibits growth. For me, this is one probably the most precious resource for maintaining the integrity of the modern world.
A second ideal that I have tried to focus on in my endless journey implementing my passions to action is eliminating the self, letting go of all preconceived notions, thus focusing on the task at hand. The notion of the ego has been an underlying theme throughout the past discussions in class. Trying to find the balance between self-concept and outer awareness is a precarious task, yet increasingly important in eliminating an elitist mindset as well as absolutes. The single most evident concept that I have come to base the motivation of my existence is the fact that no matter what I do, I am no better than anyone else. Furthermore, I think that it is unfathomable to try and make a claim for another person. I have had trouble in the current presidential campaigning process as I watch debates where the future leaders of our country somehow find the power within themselves as to assert their own beliefs upon the population of one of the most diverse countries in the world.
Contradictory to what has been presented, the essential process which will eventually lead to a successful understanding and utilization of the resources that one has to offer is self-realization. It is imperative for an individual to know his strength and weaknesses and to expose each at the appropriate time. By making a conscious effort to grasp self identity enables a person to approach personality and character holistically, and accelerate relationships through the sympathetic imagination. In Paradigms of Interdependence, Covey proposes that the essential building block of relationships:
“The place to begin building any relationship is inside ourselves, inside our Circle of Influence, our own correct principles character. As we become independent – proactive, centered in correct principles, value driven and able to organize and execute to become interdependent – capable of building rich, enduring, highly productive relationships with other people.”[4]
I write this paper as I listen and watch two men vie for the spot of leading one of the most influential nations in our world - Senator [5]John McCain and Senator [6]Barack Obama (left and right res
pectively). The question was posed to deliver a statement explaining the leadership qualities that each felt they had making them the better candidate for the job. To my surprise, their responses did not reference the topic at all; however, they went into great detail trying to belittle the other, and making false accusations as to why the other was not suited as President of the United States. Petty arguments based upon personal qualms only hinder the process of utilizing the potential of an indi
vidual, and is something that I have tried my best to veer away from throughout my life.
I have only just begun embarking upon the road towards finding success through achieving the goals that I have made for myself. As I have said, this success and final enlightenment is a process that can only be calibrated through personal reflection. I have been given the opportunity and am blessed with talents that have until this point been dormant in periods of non-use. By encouraging and emphatically promoting diversity, in tangent with eliminating ego while finding my true identity I feel that I have the ground plans for a life that I can call successful, and employ my passion for community.
The educational path that I have chosen for myself has proven thus far to be a very competitive task. Architecture on its own is a very demanding program, as is Plan II, but what I looked forward to mostly when applying for both schools was the opportunity to expand the horizons of my learning and not find myself overwhelmed in one or the other.
As for Plan II, the program has a certain amount of requirements of classes to take: World Literature, Freshman Tutorial, and Philosophy. All of these are mandated as to increase your fundamental education by providing a well-rounded discipline which focuses, in the end, on your senior thesis. The advantage of getting accepted into the Plan II honors that I found the most intriguing was eliminating potential ignorance and naivety, and it has offer me with the prospect of broadening the scope of my studies. Looking ahead in my Plan II curriculum, I am excited. The program lends itself to the interpretation of the individual, and allows for a wide spectrum of coursework that one may chose at his o
r her leisure. I feel that this part of my education can only be beneficial towards my ability to become a better leader.
In contrast to my work in the Liberal Arts, the next five years will be complimented by a curriculum in Architecture[1]. Over that time, I will have completed ten semesters of design, four semesters of construction, three semesters of visual communications, and have the skills developed in order to build a sound structure. The field of Architecture is incessantly changing, which is reflected in the continually modified requirements within the school. Having the ability to be flexible in studies enables the students within this program to be better prospective employees and designers following graduation. The road ahead is very trying; reviews are constantly open to subjective comments and critiques by those who feel superior. In the end, persevering through constant criticism and extreme vulnerability will allow me to become a better leader by reinforcing the elemental ideals set before.
[1] Picture- http://austinhighfootball.com/
[4] Covey, Steven R. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. 95.
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