Making the Grade ... Learning to pass life's tests with ease

I abhorred tests in college. I always felt unprepared when I took them.
However, when I got them back from my professors, I usually made an A.
It was funny that I always felt like I lacked what it took to pass the
test, yet I always had it. Much like life, it's not the task itself,
but how you prepare for and undertake that task.

For those courses in which I listened and read, I passed the test
whether I felt good about it or not. For those courses in which I
slept, or put aside and never studied, I usually struggled. Those
courses that I passed with ease, I found great interest. Those courses
in which I struggled, I disliked and found no interest. This is where I
began to realize that, I have to focus my efforts on things that mean
something to me. I can't focus on unnecessary exercises simply to say,
"I did it" and find that there is no satisfaction in the result.
However, I can work just as hard toward an objective with meaning and
the "struggle" would not only be worth the effort, but the lessons are
priceless.

--- Preparing for the Test ---

Sometimes everyone feels as though they cannot possibly prepare for what
life throws at them. In most circumstances, people are not ready for
the various challenges. Instead, they decide to simply give up and
exist without attempting to tap into their own vast resources. In this
way, challenges are kept at bay. However, in the process, nothing else
in life happens. However, the preparation is more of a way of learning
how to incrementally handle yourself for when you reach your ultimate
goal (i.e., take the test.) But, keep in mind that the only time that
challenges occur is when you're doing something. If you choose to take
the easy way and simply sit it out, then of course, nothing happens to
you because, nothing is happening.

Once you get moving, to prepare for any challenges that life hands out
to you, learn to take them as a lesson as opposed to a curse. Consider
life as the classroom and your ultimate vision as the completion of a
semester with the final exam. To reach the end of the semester with
high grades, you have to follow a lesson plan, which is your mission
that you must execute to reach your vision. Each night of study and
planning is the execution of your goals to fulfill your mission. As you
can see, life can provide a positive outcome with hard work and a plan
of attack to reach your vision.

If you plan your path carefully, you can take into account many of the
challenges that will occur as you pursue your desires. Even though some
challenges will occur out of the blue, they will not be as devastating
since you raised the bar with regard to your understanding of the core
challenges. You'll be ready for the final and, since you're studying
life daily, and desensitizing your fears of the unknown, the pop-quizzes
won't be as much of a shock.

--- Pass/Fail ---

Believe it or not, there is no real grade that anyone can attach to your
endeavors. People will judge you because of your dreams and desires;
however, they're making their judgments based on their own belief
systems. They don't know what you believe or what your objectives are
so they have no real way of critiquing your life. Determining a pass or
fail on your life is entirely up to you. Once you're able to make a
plan and establish a vision of where you want to be, you'll be able to
define a metric that can be used to define your own success.

--- What's next? ---

Regardless of the path you take, whether it is something you love or
something you hate, you will always encounter a challenge, or a test.
The difference is that, if you are moving toward a vision that is not
fulfilling, every challenge will seem monumental. If you are moving
toward a fulfilling vision, you will take the challenges on as part of
the class work. You will work hard to resolve the issues that are
keeping you from moving forward toward your ultimate fulfillment. In
this case, even with the multitude of challenges you face when you
decide to get in motion, you will be in a situation such that you will
never be given anything that you're not ready to handle.

In reality, you can't pass or fail in life. You can either live it, or
not. It's not always what happens, but it's how you view and handle
each and every challenge you encounter.