Prior to coming to UW-Madison, I thought that if I worked the hardest, then I could get any grade I wanted. I transferred from Madison College with a high GPA and was driven to continue my studious ways following with equally high grades. In reality, I learned UW-Madison is a hard school, and you can study day and night and still be mediocre. I struggled more than I hoped in Accounting 100 and was constantly waiting to end my misery.
I took more difficult business courses at Madison College and crushed them with A’s. I studied hard and my grades reflected my time and effort. I believe my misconception missed the part where I attended a top business school with some of the smartest people in the world. The school is very competitive, and not everyone can be “A” students anymore. The stress of not reaching what I thought was my potential was hard to deal with; but, I finally accepted that it’s okay not to be perfect.
As a word of advice for anyone fighting the same battle with yourself, study hard, but don’t let the small things beat you up. I’ve failed exams before, almost everyone has, and looking back I can’t even remember the exams I failed. As a marketing major, I learned a great amount of information from accounting. I missed small details, but the big picture is important to me. I did well in many courses and not so well in others; know your strengths, but don’t let your weaknesses keep you down.
