When you have worked extremely hard at something you love and everyone around you, even fate, decides to knock you down- you have two choices. You either stay down or get back up and put up a fight. Perseverance is all about being able to fight for what you want and love even with a multitude of negativity, pressure and challenges grinding you to the ground. I have encountered perseverance many times before regarding competitions, school work and my own beliefs however one of the most significant fights I have had so far would the fight for my true passion.

I have always acquired a dream of becoming a journalist yet, at the same time, been in a “love-hate- relationship” with this field. Ever since I was young, creative writing was not a daunting task you had to finish for schoolwork but a hobby and a platform of entertainment for me. Being able to sit down at my very own desk and type out fictional stories gave me a sense of accomplishment and success. My English have always prospered compared among the class however when I departed England and arrived back in to Hong Kong, a decision was made for me to skip a grade. Peers were much older than me and their English proficiency was certainly higher. Feeling as though I wasn’t skilled enough to enter an occupation in the English field definitely gave me a beat down. I set this dream aside for a short while until I came to a realization that being born smart is just a false legend. My classmates would undeniably be more experience than I was at the time and all I needed to do was work harder. After all, they have had one more year of education than me and surely be more mature in their writing.

However, no matter how many more books I read or how hard I want to believe that “practice does make perfect”, my inability to excel among these group of peers put me down. Every single time we get a marked essay back or a review we had to write during the holidays, the numbers were not as high as the girl who sat next to me or the friends I had lunch with. Starting to realise that my pride of being the youngest in the grade was no prized possession at all, discouragement and negativity would flow through my mind. As I started to turn my back on my dream once again, I attempted to take the easy way out and supposedly change my dream to a less academic field such as design. I am still unsure of why I chose this field yet it might’ve circled around the naive idea that grades are not as significant therefore number comparisons won’t harm me. Another milestone have been reached when I became aware of the truth that dreams are unable to be changed nor will I be as happy as I was when I wrote fictional stories on my very own desk.

Things have became clear to me when I saw an online job opening to write for an entertainment news website. They seeked for an experienced, freelance journalist who will be able to work at least 3 days in a week. I have always been a frequent reader of this news website therefore I applied by writing my first piece of entertainment article through my own research. Sure enough, I did not get the job however I gained something in return. The editor of this website replied with a heartwarming email stating she is “moved by my passion and initiative at such a young age”. I knew that my English skill may not be the best nor will it even come close to some of the talented writers in my grade however my passion is beyond my age. My passion for writing inspired myself to create my own blog and write there instead. To my disbelief, I have acquired many viewers and followers who visit my blog frequently and leave encouraging comments. The editor of the news website eventually accepted my review of a TV series and featured it on her page.

I have stumbled upon failed grades, deplorable comments and dramatic comparisons with the girl who sat next to me however as long as you keep going, negativity will eventually get knocked down while you will finally prosper. Whatever knocks you down the first time only makes you stronger and prepares you for the next. I cannot be sure that this is the equation to make you a tycoon or a millionaire, however I know for a fact that with a fighter’s mindset, getting far in life is not a problem.