you get out what you put in

I have been told so many times during my time in education that 'you get out what you put in'. Usually the teacher is referring to studying for exams, in the hope that their students will realise that they have to work very hard to achieve the highest grade they possibly can. Some students ignore this completely and avoid studying at all costs, some people think about what the teacher has said but don't follow the subliminal advice completely, and there are some students who realise that the teacher is being completely truthful. These people will work their absolute hardest to do the best they possibly can.

I really think that what our teachers say in the build up to exams is so important. We learn about hard work and dedication. We learn to work towards a goal and try our hardest to do the best that we can. These lessons can be applied to situations other than education, to be vague, it can be applied to the rest of your life.

Imagine you are working and there is an opportunity for a promotion. Your boss has to choose who to promote- only two people are being considered for the promotion- a co-worker and you. Your co-worker is the same age as you and you have both been working for the company for the same amount of time. Your co-worker gets to work five minutes late most days, and during the day they often avoid working and would rather socialise with other workers. They leave on time most days, but days they leave a few minutes early because they've had enough. You, on the other hand, get to work on time, or five minutes early everyday without fail. You work hard during the day and keep your breaks to a necessary minimum. When you find that you are busy at work, you will often stay for longer than your shift, just to get your work finished.

Who do you think would get the promotion? You would. Now, do you think it's reasonable for the co-worker to be annoyed that they didn't get the promotion? Do you think that it's right for them to think that they should have a better chance of getting it than you? I don't think it is. Once again, you get out what you put in. If the co-worker really wanted the promotion, they should have worked hard for a long time before the option of a promotion was ever available.

Unfortunately, lots of people don't put everything they can into things, but they still expect to get the best out of it. Hard work, dedication and motivation are all needed to achieve highly in life. Next time you feel that something unfair has happened to you, try not to think of it as a negative thing. Instead, think on where you could improve. Life is about growth and development, and that means learning from mistakes.

Try to work your absolute hardest for what you want, or what you need to do, and you'll be surprised with the positive results.