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If you think your teachers have power over you, over your schedule, over your aspirations, over your success, here in university or beyond, you're believing a lie that's entirely in your head. The truth has always been that teachers have great power to influence students, but we want to influence our students so that they will be inspired to achieve more, pursue their dreams and conquer new heights.
True leaders never take power from those they lead; instead, they empower them. Sadly, those who are led and do not lead in this world, are very often those who forfeit what only they can give. You see, as a student, as a citizen, as an employee or whatever position you may find yourself occupying at the moment you'll have leaders, but no one can take this power from you... unless you let them.
External circumstances can change beyond your control (at least to some extent). But how you respond to them is an entirely different matter. That's something you decide. And the ability to decide is this power I'm referring to.
Related post: Changing your life starts here
Here are four ways students are empowering their teachers rather than themselves.
1) Asking for less material to be included in an exam
Many students ask (if not beg) for me to give less material for each exam. They don't realize that doing so only means more material will be on subsequent exams. I should write about planning in a later post! But what this seemingly harmless request does, can be very harmful... it subtly destroys your self-image and your self-image is key to academic success (and other kind of success too). This kind of request is what makes you think that you are unable to do well with the resources you are given to accomplish a required task. Those who succeed believe they can accomplish their goals with what they have!
When you think you need less material on an exam, or simpler material, you are shortchanging yourself into thinking that you are not capable. Guess what the outcome of such thinking will be? Certain failure!
I have a student who does the exact opposite. "Whatever you want to include, I'm fine with it! Whatever date you assign for the exam, it's ok with me." she says. I love that attitude! She knows she can handle it and she refuses to let the decision of a teacher affect her academic success or even worse, dictate how her life during her university years should look like. That's an attitude every student needs to have.
2) Asking for exam dates to be postponed
There is a right reason to ask this question (think schedule conflict). But this again follows the same line of thinking as above. Many students have no idea how to schedule their time. They end up riding the surf waves of exams, which usually means cramming for every exam and having little time to breathe. Surfing is much funner than that!
The way to strip time of it's power over you, is to organize it and refuse the demands, small and large, important and insignificant from determining what you do, how you do it and when you do it. More to come on that!
3) Complaining about the course content.
It's too hard. It's too boring. It's too complex. It is because you let it be. Granted, I'm not talking about your teacher's teaching style. That's another story. But you can condition your mind to like even the dullest of subjects. I used to tell myself that math wasn't my forte. I then decided to enjoy solving it's problems. It worked so well I can't even remember struggling for the sophomore course, a course that had terrified me as a very hard subject... but I'll admit it, I don't remember anything about the courses content... just that I enjoyed studying it!
4) Pushing your teacher to raise your grade
Can you accept failure? Can you accept frustration? The next time you face a rejection or 'failure' rethink it as a redirection in your life. Learn from your mistakes and move on. Don't define yourself based on your failures, think of it as "Well, now I know one way not to do that." Ever heard of how Thomas Edison tried to invent the light bulb? He tried 1000 different ways which all failed. He said he discovered 1000 ways how NOT to make a light bulb. He learnt from his failures. Or consider KFC's Colonel Sander's, who traveled across the US at a staggeringly 'old' age trying to sell his recipe for chicken. He received the answer 'no' a thousand times! Today, KFC is everywhere I don't need to define it.
So when you choose to avoid responsibility for a decision, you've just surrendered more power to world, more of your power to be precise. Next time you get a bad grade, face up to it rather than blaming it on circumstances. See what you did wrong, learn from it and move on!
Related post: Don't waster your failure!
In conclusion, take responsibility for your life, your habits, your time and stop blaming other people, circumstances or the world for what you do, think or say. Learn to see challenges as mountains to be scaled rather than obstacles in your path believing that if someone else did so can you. It's one of the most empowering things you'll ever learn to do, in university and the real world too!
Marc Mikhael, Ph.D.
The Apprentice's Compass - Navigate University!
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