Earlier today, I walked through the galleries at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History to view all of the gems. If I am not looking at art, you can find me gazing at minerals and gems. This is a new interest of mine, brought about from the short time that I stopped teaching in 2013 to sell jewelry for David Yurman in Manhattan and in Boca Raton. Prior to selling for Yurman, I really didn’t know very much about gems. During the short time that I sold for Yurman, I broke three sales records. One of the records that I broke was that I was the first salesperson at the Boca Boutique to sell a diamond from their bridal collection. It was a gorgeous $40,000 diamond!
I learned a little about diamonds back then, and today as I gazed into the cases of diamonds, it made me think about the wonderful mysteries of diamonds. Did you know that diamonds come from a material (some say carbon, others say charcoal) that has been subjected to great heat, pressure and stress, in order for it to transform into a beautiful diamond? When the natural material is placed under pressure, it will transform into a diamond or if it can’t handle the pressure, it will simply become dust. Fascinating!
What a wonderful analogy to life. Some of us, when placed under stress and pressure will rise to the top and achieve success, while others crumble under pressure and quit.
l want to challenge you to think about how you handle pressure in your life. Do you fall to pieces or does stress cause you to gather your strength to conquer the situation? Truthfully, I have reacted to stress both ways. There have been times when I have fallen apart over stressful situations, and there are other times when pressure empowered me to continue on.
High school can place a lot of stress and pressure on you. There is peer pressure, performance pressure, pressure for grades, pressure for GPA’s and pressure to get into college. For some of you, it is simply the pressure to finish high school and get your diploma.
So, what can you do to ensure that you don’t crumble under pressure in school? This is an important topic to discuss because one thing is for sure; we can not escape pressure in life.
One of the key factors that will help you be successful in school and to handle pressure is to surround yourself with supportive people. You are not alone in this journey. You have teachers, administrators, counselors, resource specialists, security officers, and climate & culture people all around you to help you be successful, so take advantage of all that support.
Also, I suggest to surround yourself with friends who are on the right path and who share similar goals that you have, and try to minimize everything that will distract you and keep you from making the right decisions.
Take responsibility for your school work and believe in yourself. Make a concerted effort to see challenges as opportunities for achievement and growth, but don’t forget to pace yourself. Stress and pressure can wear you down at times. Sometimes, you have to stop and take a break to rest. If you run yourself down too much you will crash under pressure, so remember to eat healthy, sleep and exercise.
Life is so interesting. Sometimes, when things are at its worse, and the pressure is on, you might feel defeated, but, always remember, it is always darkest before the dawn. People in my life have seen me at my worse and did not stick around long enough to see me blossom. They did not have the capacity to understand that catepillars turn into butterflies, sand into pearls, and coal into diamonds.
When I look at you, I don't see a lump of coal, I see a diamond in the making. Don't quit under pressure, allow your education to transform you into something beautiful. Love, Ms. B.
I learned a little about diamonds back then, and today as I gazed into the cases of diamonds, it made me think about the wonderful mysteries of diamonds. Did you know that diamonds come from a material (some say carbon, others say charcoal) that has been subjected to great heat, pressure and stress, in order for it to transform into a beautiful diamond? When the natural material is placed under pressure, it will transform into a diamond or if it can’t handle the pressure, it will simply become dust. Fascinating!
What a wonderful analogy to life. Some of us, when placed under stress and pressure will rise to the top and achieve success, while others crumble under pressure and quit.
l want to challenge you to think about how you handle pressure in your life. Do you fall to pieces or does stress cause you to gather your strength to conquer the situation? Truthfully, I have reacted to stress both ways. There have been times when I have fallen apart over stressful situations, and there are other times when pressure empowered me to continue on.
High school can place a lot of stress and pressure on you. There is peer pressure, performance pressure, pressure for grades, pressure for GPA’s and pressure to get into college. For some of you, it is simply the pressure to finish high school and get your diploma.
So, what can you do to ensure that you don’t crumble under pressure in school? This is an important topic to discuss because one thing is for sure; we can not escape pressure in life.
One of the key factors that will help you be successful in school and to handle pressure is to surround yourself with supportive people. You are not alone in this journey. You have teachers, administrators, counselors, resource specialists, security officers, and climate & culture people all around you to help you be successful, so take advantage of all that support.
Also, I suggest to surround yourself with friends who are on the right path and who share similar goals that you have, and try to minimize everything that will distract you and keep you from making the right decisions.
Take responsibility for your school work and believe in yourself. Make a concerted effort to see challenges as opportunities for achievement and growth, but don’t forget to pace yourself. Stress and pressure can wear you down at times. Sometimes, you have to stop and take a break to rest. If you run yourself down too much you will crash under pressure, so remember to eat healthy, sleep and exercise.
Life is so interesting. Sometimes, when things are at its worse, and the pressure is on, you might feel defeated, but, always remember, it is always darkest before the dawn. People in my life have seen me at my worse and did not stick around long enough to see me blossom. They did not have the capacity to understand that catepillars turn into butterflies, sand into pearls, and coal into diamonds.
When I look at you, I don't see a lump of coal, I see a diamond in the making. Don't quit under pressure, allow your education to transform you into something beautiful. Love, Ms. B.
RSS Feed
