Influences

Influences

Throughout the course of my life I’ve dealt with both positive and negative influences, but the person with the most positive influence would have to be my father. I could only imagine my life if it had not been for my father, and lets just say it’s not the life of me successfully completing high school with honors. There are a variety of reasons towards why I believe he is the one with the most positive influence. For instance, when I feel that I can no longer succeed, he gives me reasons to keep trying, as well as giving me the mindset to never give up because nothing good comes easy. In addition to this he has made me work for everything that I have acquired in life to show me that nothing is handed to you in this world we live in, and lastly he taught me to think positive.

            I was a very exceptional student throughout my early years of schooling. I didn’t experience any problems probably up until the 8^th grade. Before that point in time I was doing all my work, studying hard in all my classes, as well as having time to spend with my friends, but towards the end of my 8^th grade school year, I started to loose focus in school. This became very noticeable to my father because of the extreme slip in my grades. Though my grades weren’t failing grades, they were just highly below what I was capable of as opposed to if I were focused. At this point my father basically cut me off from all extra-curricular activities until I managed to pull my grades up, and from that point on I have maintained good grades, with a few failing slightly below my standards, but still acceptable. This situation helps you understand that my father wouldn’t allow for me to settle for sub-par grades when he is able to observe my full capabilities. That point in my life was also a time when I felt I could no longer succeed but after coming across him,  I managed to get my life back on  track to get to where I was headed, which at this point , I was unsure.

            I am a teenager, and as for most of us, we want a lot of things in life. But what sets some of us apart from the others is that some of us have to actually work for the things we have, as opposed to others who have things handed to them. I am safe to say that out off all the things that I have acquired in life, only about 15% of those things had been handed to me. My father was one of those individuals who strongly believed that everything should be worked for in life. For instance I want to build a house, drive a nice car, and be able to take care of my family when I get older. I use to be under the impression that these things would just come, and I wouldn’t have to do much work to be able to do them. But I later had to learn the hard way that everything in life has to be worked for. I buy my clothes, shoes, pay for my expenses etc., though  these things are just wants, and I may not need a $200 dollar pair of sneakers, or $50 dollar shirt, it helped me understand the concept that if you want something in life, you must go chase after it. Though I just recently acquired my first real job at Hardees, I have done many other things in exchange for money such as mow lawns; babysit children, and common chores done around the house. The ability to be able to work for the things that I want in life is an exceptional trait that my father has helped me acquire.

            Lastly, thinking positive was also something that my father helped me do. Much like everyone else, when something bad happens in your life, you feel that nothing can ever get better, and that things will only get worst. But with a positive mindset, you are able to take something negative that has happened in your life, and build on it, and try to prevent it from happening again. Though I don’t have a specific story to represent how he led me to my positive thinking process, I am still safe to say that he has helped me acquire this thought process I have, if not influenced it. A person with a positive mind is said to go further than someone who lacks on positive thinking, and I am sure this is why he influenced me to have that particular mindset, because he, much like other fathers, wants their child to go far in life.

            In conclusion, my father has had a profound impact upon my life, much like no other. I really can not understand where I would be right now if it had not been for him. When I think of individuals who have grown up without their father I wonder how they did it, not saying that I cant succeed without him, I’m just saying it would have been more difficult to do so.