A creator mindset is not particularly a philosophical concept explicitly tailored toward the academic field. It is also applicable to certain workplace situations. To put it simply, it is a mindset that actively encourages a person to take ownership and pride in their work while also ensuring quality. Back in my grade school years, I was bullied quite a lot. Because of this, for years, I have associated my poor academic grades in grade school with this tragic experience. Quite frankly speaking, this is the very definition of a victim mindset. And granted, those tragic experiences did contribute to some of my academic failures, but it was far from the entire story. Hence, after stepping into society and experiencing life in the past eight years or so, I have matured enough and grown out of that victim mindset. Through my years of work experience, I have learned to cherish misfortunes because they are a gift, a trial, and an obstacle that I must overcome to further perfect myself. In order to do this, I would first have to embrace challenges and the curve balls thrown at me. The best way to do that is to find some “fun” towards overcoming that barrier. Quite frankly, an excellent example is this discussion forum submission. Most students would see and associate discussion forums as an overbearing academic burden because they simply could not find the “fun” in writing them. However, I see it from a completely different perspective because I, for one, appreciate the opportunities that the professors and educators have extended to me to express myself openly and vocally. In addition, writing is also another form of communication. Suppose one can communicate effectively and concisely through written communications. In that case, they are also very likely to be a person of a collaborative mindset, which further refines your ability to succeed in a workplace environment, and, quite frankly, in life. When I first started here at Mount SAC, my English 1A professor asked us to create a blog by providing us with weekly journal prompts to write. So with that, I have grown very accustomed to writing and expressing myself. At the end of that summer intersession course, he encouraged us to keep that blog going in an effort to continue to treasure the power of expression. To heed that call, for the most part, I did, and I still write to that blog to this date. I have posted nearly all of my past discussion forums responses to that blog for everyone to see, read, and enjoy. It is truly a very enjoyable moment that I genuinely adore.

Responses to the professor or other students:

I can totally understand your frustration. I, too, am heavily reliant on the Canvas to-do list and the calendar. Thankfully I have not had any issues so far with all of my professors being really technologically savvy, especially with Canvas. However, I do check on grades a bit more frequently, sometimes twice every day, and it was an obsession that I complete every single assignment that is listed as due at the earliest convenience possible. Perhaps, you could try to check on grades more frequently, although maybe not to the extent of my obsession. 😂 Also, I do believe it is important to build a strong bond with your professor so that they remember you and hence, build a solid impression inside of the professor’s mind that you are, in fact, a hard-working individual. To give you an example, last fall, I took MATH110, elementary statistics, and the professor was having a really tough time conveying concepts to the class. So I took studying into my own hands and found a lecture video series on YouTube called Professor Leonard and used it to study ahead before the next class session. So long story short, in the end, I ended up being the only person that was willing to dedicate that much time to self-studying. This, in return, played well because I was the only person in the class that was responding to his in-class questions. I can only guess that left a permanent impression in his mind because when the semester was over, and while anxiously waiting for my final grades, I was surprised to find that he gave me an A instead of a B that I had long anticipated. Just to put it into the context of how much of a curve that was, in order to scratch the surface of an A, I would need to score a 95% or higher on the final exam, and when I spoke to him after the final exam, I knew precisely that I did not, in fact, get 95%. According to my calculation, I probably received an 85% on that final exam, which would technically bring my grade to an 85% or 87%. This ultimately means that the good impression that I have left with him with my excellent in-class participation earned me a massive round-up, a round-up that equates to roughly three to five percentage points, which is almost unheard of in any class. So, with this, you can see how important it is to create a tight and close bond with your professors. You could definitely try that for your future classes.

I am genuinely impressed with the fact that you were already shooting for Calculus back in high school. I believe I finished my high school senior year with just Algebra II. Quite honestly speaking, just looking at that achievement alone, I am already able to tell that you are a highly motivated student. At the very least, a lot more motivated than I was back in high school almost 10 years ago. Math is also my weakest subject, however, I believe that what is more important than working hard is understanding the concepts themselves. It is also very important to be resourceful. In a previous discussion reply that I have made to Caroline, I noted that I was struggling with statistics last fall semester, but ended the class with an A with my resourcefulness in seeking help, including self-teaching by sitting in front of my computer for 2 nights straight watching almost 20 hours worth of lecture videos by a YouTube professor. In the end,  I was able to finish off the class with a massive curve to an A due to the good impression that I have made with my professor. So, the point is that don’t ever get discouraged, ask for help, attend office hours if need be, and most importantly, build a bond with your professor. It is super important and I cannot stress this enough.