Cliff Stoll's book, "The Cuckoo's Egg", helped me gain a better understanding of the importance of good work ethic and being willing to go beyond the expected. Stoll begins his story explaining how he was relocated in his job, going from being an astronomer to a systems manager. He had little to no experience in computer programming, and so he was thrown into the deep end of the swimming pool and was told, "Swim!" Through the course of the book, he relates how he did that and more.
As a student in a major that I had absolutely no experience in prior to coming to college, I often feel like I'm in the deep end of the pool being told to swim. At times the feeling of ineptitude can be overwhelming, and I am uncertain as to whether or not I'll be able to make it in the real world. These feelings early on caused me to be satisfied with merely doing the minimum, saying to myself, "at least I'm not drowning." It has taken me awhile, but more and more I'm beginning to understand that this approach to academic learning will not cut it: the minimum is not enough. It is imperative to go beyond the expected, stretch myself, work more than the next guy and become excellent at whatever I do.
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