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| » So you want to score As and high distinctions? |
| If you're reading this, I am assuming you are a student. One who is studying right now at university or some school. And you want to do well in school which is commendable, I used to be a scholar, and now I'm the founder of Skyjuice Software. When I was young I never did that well in school. In fact I failed several times in Mathematics. I remember I failed Mathematics 4 times out of 6 exams in school before finally achieving full marks in my class a year later. I was close to being ranked last in class several times. Despite that I performed a lot better in university. In fact I ranked within the top 1% of my university cohort upon graduation. |
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| » How I scored top marks (despite failing several times) |
| In life it's okay to fail. We're conditioned not to fail by our parents which is very dangerous. Failure inevitably will lead to success. Remember it's okay to make mistakes as long as you do not repeat them. I learnt from my failures and recognised that the following characteristics are extremely important. |
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- Discipline - You will need discipline in life in whatever you do. No discipline will result in failure over and over again.
- Basics - You need to know your basics. Master them. Do and repeat, over and overa gain. Everything is built off the basics. You must master the basics in order to build a sound platform of knowledge.
- Follow what is required - Many subjects usually have clear marking criteria on how to score As. Follow them and make sure you score well in each component. Many students often do not look at the criteria.
- Drive - How much do you want to do well? The world is getting more and more competitive nowadays. Do you want to be average? Lead an average life? Or do you want to rise above everyone else and perform to the best of your ability? Life is up to you. Have high expectations no matter what you do.
- Focus on today - The past is past. No matter how many times you've failed, don't dwell on it. You cannot change the past, only the present.
- Do! - As a certain wise Jedi master once said, "Do or do not, there is no try". Many things in life are different in theory than reality. I used to study software, and there's a lot of theory in that. One can know all the theory of developing software, but if they never write any they are no better off than someone who has never written software.
- Help others - If you've learnt something, help others who are weaker than you. That re-iterates your knowledge making you more confident and you pass on that knowledge as well, what can be better?
- Ask questions - Often it's not knowing just the right answer, but asking the right questions. This can produce new knowledge and provide you with additional insight on what you've learnt.
- Exhibit independent thought - Make up your own mind about things. Do not follow the crowd. Just because your friends are taking a subject does not mean you have to. Remember it's your money you're spending and your future, your friends do not make your future, you do.
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| » Conclusion |
| Doing well in your exams does not mean you'll be successful in life, but you increase the probablity of being more successful that your peers, based on academic merit. In my case, it meant a free university scholarship which was worth more than 30 grand. People often do not think of the future, and only focus on the present. Do well in your study and you will be rewarded eventually. |
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| » Who am I? |
| My name is Chooi Guan Lim, 2 words make up my first name, and I'm the founder of Skyjuice Software. If my tips helped you, do drop me a line by visiting our contact us page (any email address will do). |
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