To conclude our spring internship program, we’re asking our interns to write about one particular topic or discovery they made while working at Nine13sports. Today, Emma Ulrich, interning with us this semester from Butler University, has tackled the assignment:
Emma enjoyed motivating and encouraging the kids to give their best effort and showing them how perseverance leads to accomplishment!
Perseverance is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult.” It is this trait, and the importance of it, that is the most salient thing I’ve learned through my internship. It seems as if I was set to learn about the importance of perseverance from the start. In fact, at one of the first schools I went to, perseverance was the characteristic of the month; it was announced as such on our first day there, and each week afterwards, on the announcements, we were given a small story or inspirational tale that signified its importance. This was a nice tie-in for the time that we were working at this school, because if the kids felt as if the courses were too difficult, we could remind them of the quality of the month!
Additionally, the importance of perseverance and the fact that it leads to accomplishment was seen in all of the kids’ faces when they finished the courses. There have been numerous fist pumps, cheers, and smiles (as well as some dramatics) when the kids finish a course that seemed impossible at first. And seeing this has inspired me to remember the importance of perseverance. Many times, when faced with difficult tasks, I tend to ignore them and/or procrastinate. However, working with such dedicated kids has encouraged me to stay focused and work to finish all of my tasks, even those that are difficult or boring. In fact, there was a class I was in this semester that I found incredibly challenging, in both coursework and subject matter. I highly considered dropping the course on several different occasions. Whenever these thoughts entered my head, though, I would think about the characteristic of the month from the school—perseverance—and how each of the kids we worked with embodied this trait. And this helped me to finish this course with a grade that I am proud of. If I hadn’t been able to work at Nine13 Sports this semester, and if I was not consistently reminded of the greatness of perseverance, I probably would have given into the thoughts of dropping the course and would not be as well-rounded of a student because of it. Therefore, working with kids has inspired me to continue on, even in the face of difficulty, because the reward will be worth it in some way.
“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.”—President John Quincy Adams
And if we remember this in all situations—from riding bikes, sticking with a difficult class, or even when on the job hunt—there is nothing in the world that can stop us.