Category: HSC

5 things I wish I knew before leaving school

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I witnessed my sister heading off to her Year 12 Formal the other day and I felt so incredibly proud. The beginning of the end to a long thirteen years of schooling and turning the page to a new chapter post-HSC exams. I came home from work the night of Aimee’s last exam and she was glowing. The freedom she had only been waiting forward to was now a reality. I hugged her, welcoming her to this new and exciting journey. I explained to her that while she may feel like a huge burden had been lifted off her shoulders, it is not all cruisy from here. Life throws lots of curveballs and you need to be prepared to face them head on, instead of let them overpower you. 

Later that night, I laid in bed thinking how that was me two years ago and how much has changed in that short period of time. I reminisced about the challenges that I faced as I completed my exams and my personal experiences of that taste of ‘freedom’ that followed. I quickly wrote down a few things that I wish I had known when I waved school goodbye, with the intention of sharing these pieces of advice with my sister.

1. Be open minded. You’ll meet new people with different values and morals to you. Don’t let that dishearten you, but rather listen to their perspectives, explore new avenues and deepen your own understanding. Don’t be stubborn and close-minded. Always be willing to learn and grow. Knowledge is power. Stand up for what you believe in, but don’t shut down others for their beliefs. 

2. Embrace challenges. Acknowledge that things won’t be easy, but when difficulties arise, take those moments to pause and evaluate the situation from multiple directions. Sometimes we limit ourselves to the things we want to see and are oblivious to the things we should or need to be focusing on. Your attitude and perspective changes everything, so adjust them accordingly.

3. Find your passion and run with that. Do something that you love, but also try new things – you may love something that you don’t even know yet! The first step is finding something that you love, but the most important thing is believing in that. Never be scared to step outside your comfort zone. Often, you will find that you will make new experiences, meet new people and have the opportunity to reveal your hidden talents when you take a risk and try something different. 

4. Make time for your friends. It is different after school, because you have to put time and effort into maintaining your friendships. You grow up with these people and you learn from each other. These relationships are important and you will find that once you go your separate ways, it is much more difficult to hold on to those special bonds you have created. All relationships work better when equal amounts of effort is put in by everyone involved.

5. Remember that you are Loved. You will quickly realise that this world is messed up. There are so many things going on, not only on a global scale, but even within our local surroundings. It is okay to feel overwhelmed by all of these things, but also remember to have faith that there is something much bigger and greater than all of these materialistic and temporary things. In a world full of chaos, let this reminder bring you peace. 

Growing up is an exciting, but scary and fun, yet challenging experience. I have realised in the last two years, that I have already grown and matured so much. But more importantly, I have realised that this growing and maturing never stops.

Keep smiling. x

Twenty fourteen.

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As I reflect on the year that has quickly come to an end, I have realised that there is no better way to sum up 2014 as the “Year of Challenges & Self-improvement”, as corny as that sounds. Out of the many valuable things I have learnt this year, I have refined the list down to just five. 

1. Be comfortable with who you are. 
Life is too short to be living each day trying to impress those around you. Do what you want, not what society tells you. Go against the grain. Be different. Challenge yourself to step outside your comfort zone and try new things. Embrace your flaws, your quirks, your talents and your passions. You are you because of these things and who is to tell you that they are right or wrong? 
2. Listen.
Listen to other people’s opinions and thoughts, but be strong in what you believe and have your own opinions. Don’t be narrow-minded. Instead, be open and willing to understand other’s perspectives. You will not only gain respect from them, but you will learn to be accepting of others. 
3. HSC does suck. 
It’s blunt, I know, but it’s true. HSC does suck, but Year 12 as a whole has been one of the most incredible years by far. It has challenged me in ways I didn’t know I could be – mentally and emotionally. It has been a year of many highs and many lows. I have made amazing friendships at school that I know will last me a lifetime, but it’s also made me realise that there are some people I may drift from. There is minimal effort required with school relationships, because 5/7 days a week you are there. That said, the hardest part about leaving school is knowing that in order to maintain those friendships post-school, you actually need to be putting in a lot of time and effort now. 
But the thing I will miss a lot about school is, believe it or not, the uniform. I have always hated Mufti Days merely because I am incredibly indecisive when it comes to choosing what to wear. Uniforms made it so much easier, so here comes my first struggle of 2015. 
4. Do what makes you happy. 
Enjoy simplicity. Take your friends to the park and have a picnic. Go to a lookout with someone special. Take lots of photos. Follow your passions and work hard to become the person you want to. Do what makes you happy. If you aren’t 100% committed and saying “heck yes!” to something, then drop it. Decisions can be hard, but ask yourself, will this matter this time next year? Because if the answer is no, then why are you worrying about it?
5. Set goals and believe you CAN. 
Don’t give up on achieving your goals, even though I have learnt that sometimes you can try your hardest and still not quite be as successful as you had anticipated. A perfect example would be my HSC results. All year I have had a number plastered to my wall which represented the ATAR I needed to be eligible for my course. A few weeks ago we received our results from the Board of Studies and my marks were much better than I thought. I was pretty happy with how I had gone and as I averaged my marks in my head, I decided my ATAR would be within a few marks of what I needed. Unfortunately, all of my subjects were scaled down and although my ATAR was good, I was extremely disappointed that I had not achieved my goal. It is shattering when you strive to do your best and continually try, yet the results are not what you had worked so hard for. I broke down into tears – which reiterates my third point above. However, after some time reflecting over my results, I soon realised that I may not have received the ATAR required for my course, but I am eligible for many other similar courses. Days later I received an early offer from UWS and although I am still in the process of filtering through which university and course I would like to do most, it has allowed me to recognise that although I may not have achieved my goal, I tried my best this year and I am still able to study courses that I am interested in. Set goals and work hard to achieve them. If it happens to not turn out for the best, then look at it in a positive way and set a new goal, but never, ever stop trying. Because if you don’t try, you have already failed.

So as 2015 rolls in, I want to say goodbye and thank you to a year of learning and hello to the year of new beginnings. It’s scary and exciting all at once – bring it on. 

Keep smiling. x

HSC? Done.

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Oh hey life, I’ve missed you. 15 days, 7 exams and 17.5 hours of writing. That’s it. Done. HSCyaLater. 

The stress; the nerves; the last minute cramming; the messy bedroom floor; the endless supply of black pens; the constant struggle of only highlighting the “important parts” but rather making it a challenge to see how little words can be left untouched; the countdown to freedom that feels like it’s taking forever; the past papers and of course, the tears. 

I honestly can’t believe that it is over. It came and it’s gone and it all happened so quickly. I have this theory. You’re either really good at Math or really good at English. And if you are lucky (or not so lucky?) to be blessed with the brains of both, then you have just proven my theory to be wrong. For me, I am definitely not a Math person. Give me words any day, but numbers, no thanks. The only numbers I like to see is your mobile number 😉 *insert cringes and nervous laughter here*. (I know what’ you’re thinking – that was brilliant. You’re welcome). 

It’s funny though, the day before my Math exam I was outside studying in the shade. At one point, I began to feel really overwhelmed with the content I wasn’t confident with. The questions were too hard and I was freaking out. I couldn’t do this. How was I supposed to survive the 3 hour exam tomorrow? I was outside for about two or three hours and during that time the sun had moved (hello captain obvious) and I was now sitting in the sun, getting a mean-as sock tan mind you. 

The simple shift from shade to sunlight made me realise that time doesn’t stop for anyone. Those three hours of absolute hell tomorrow would be over in less than 24 hours. We have to make the most of the time we have right now, because we will never, ever get it back. This motivated me to continue studying and do my best, because in a couple of days all of this would be over. And here I am, out the other end of the dreaded HSC month. 

Everyone has days where we are just sitting in the shade and it is not until the sun moves that we realise time keeps going. Make the most of the time you have with the people you’re with. Enjoy the little things. Simplicity is what reminds us that life is beautiful, despite the HSC exams, the tiring work, the relationship issues…whatever you may be struggling with. Everything happens, but then everything finishes. So when you feel like your world is on a downwards spiral, remember that spirals eventually get smaller and smaller and when they reach the smallest point, they stop. The sun will move soon and the shadow keeping you down will shift. Trust me. 

Keep smiling. x