Part 1: Motivation To begin with, you need to be mentally prepared by having the correct mindset and attitude. Based on my previous experiences, intrinsic motivation is more powerful than extrinsic motivation. If you are doing something because your main purpose is to put a club on the activities list or to impress admissions officers, you may need to find another activity to pursue. Good luck trying to do that because it is going to be quite painful and difficult to keep going. The reason why intrinsic motivation is a lot more effective than extrinsic motivation is because intrinsic motivation focuses more on self-growth and development instead of putting your eye on the treasure all the time. Also, if you are intrinsically motivated, you wouldn't feel terribly disappointed if you didn't win because you still gained skills from the experience. If you live by the 3 words, "Just keep playing," you will not only enjoy the journey a lot more but take off a lot of press...
This is a blog where I write about my feelings, thoughts, and life. By blogging, I hope I can know myself better.