1. Getting On Course to Your Success Chapter One

2. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 2 Choices of Successful Students

3. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 3 Taking the First Step, Journal 1 Focus Questions –What does “success” mean to you? –When you achieve your greatest success, what will you have, what will you be doing, and what kind of person will you be?

4. Success Is staying on course to your desired outcomes and experiences, creating wisdom, happiness, and unconditional self-worth along the way.

5. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 5 Write a Great Life Journal work is an excellent approach to uncovering hidden truths about ourselves…… Marsha Sinetar

6. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 6 The Top Choices of Successful Students Behaviors Attend class regularly Do all assigned work and turn in on time Participate actively Attitudes/Beliefs Take personal responsibility Be goal-directed Believe in yourself

7. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 7 The "A" Student - An Outstanding Student ATTENDANCE: "A" students have virtually perfect attendance. Their commitment to the class is a high priority and exceeds other temptations. PREPARATION: "A" students are prepared for class. They always read the assignment. Their attention to detail is such that they occasionally can elaborate on class examples. CURIOSITY: "A" students demonstrate interest in the class and the subject. They look up or dig out what they don't understand. They often ask interesting questions or make thoughtful comments. RETENTION: "A" students have retentive minds and practice making retentive connections. They are able to connect past learning with the present. They bring a background of knowledge with them to their classes. They focus on learning concepts rather than memorizing details.

8. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 8 ATTITUDE: "A" students have a winning attitude. They have both the determination and the self-discipline necessary for success. They show initiative. They do things they have not been told to do. TALENT: "A" students demonstrate a special talent. It may be exceptional intelligence and insight. It may be unusual creativity, organizational skills, commitment - or a some combination. These gifts are evident to the teacher and usually to the other students as well. EFFORT: "A" students match their effort to the demands of an assignment. COMMUNICATIONS: "A" students place a high priority on writing and speaking in a manner that conveys clarity and thoughtful organization. Attention is paid to conciseness and completeness. RESULTS: "A" students make high grades on tests - usually the highest in the class. Their work is a pleasure to grade.

9. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 9 Fork in the Road Critical Forks in the Road Responsibility Who’s in charge of creating my life the way I want it to be? Motivation What are my most valued goals and dreams? What outcomes and experiences do I want to create? What’s my educational goal? What job/career do I want? What legacy do I want to leave? To what degree do I expect success? Self-Management How do I manage my actions effectively to achieve the life I want? What self- management tools will assist me? Interdependence Who do I want to associate with? Will I help others? Will I ask for and accept help? Self-Awareness What are my habit patterns? Which habits support my success? Which habits sabotage my success? How can I change the habits that sabotage me? Life-Long Learning What do I need to learn to achieve my desired outcomes and experiences? How can I use what I’m learning in every college course I take? How can I create deep and lasting learning? What life lessons do I need to master to succeed? How can I develop wisdom? Emotional Intelligence How do I experience life fully yet manage my emotions so that I stay on course to my goals and dreams? Self-Esteem Who am I? What do I value? How can I feel even more confident? What reputation do I have with myself?

10. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 10 Develop Self-Acceptance, Journal 2 Focus Questions –Why is high self-esteem so important to success? –What can you do to raise your self- esteem?

11. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 11 Self -Esteem Is the ability to value one’s self and to treat oneself with dignity, love and reality. Virgina Satir

12. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 12 Tips on Raising your Self Esteem Stop comparing yourself to other people. If you play this game, you're likely to compare yourself in a negative way and set yourself up for continuing to have low self esteem. Why continue to play a game where you've set the rules against yourself, so that you're less likely to win! Don't keep putting yourself down! You can't develop high self esteem if you constantly repeat negative comments about your skills and abilities. Other people will pick up on it and take on board the negative way you view yourself. How are they likely to treat you? Also don't beat yourself up over "mistakes" that you've made - learn how to reframe them so that they work for you.

13. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 13 Using positive affirmations is an excellent way to raise your self esteem. If you can program your mind to repeat negative phrases about yourself (and see how effective that's been!), then you can certainly get into the habit of continually thinking (and saying to yourself) positive statements about you. When you do, allow yourself to experience the positive feelings about your statements. Also use inspirational quotes to assist you. Accept all compliments graciously. Don't dismiss or ignore them. When you do you give yourself the message that you do not deserve or are not worthy of praise, which reflects low self esteem. It also means that others will become more reluctant to praise or acknowledge your abilities, if you don't. Take advantage of and use life coaching programs, workshops, books on how to raise your self esteem and develop a more positive attitude. Whatever material you see, read it acts as subliminal learning, which means that it will plant itself in your mind and dominate your behavior. Talk about food for thought - what diet is your mind on? Is it a nourishing one?diet

14. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 14 Mix with positive and supportive people. Who you associate with influences your thoughts, actions and behavior - another form of subliminal learning. Negative people can put you and your ideas down and it lowers your self esteem. On the other hand, when you are surrounded by supportive people, you feel better about yourself, which helps to raise your self esteem. Learn how to develop your positive personal support network. Acknowledge your positive qualities and skills. Too many people with low self esteem constantly put themselves down (back to no 1 again!) and don't appreciate their many positive attributes. Learn how to truly affirm and value your many excellent qualities. If you find this difficult, ask others to tell you. They'll come up with things you would never have imagined! Stop putting up with stuff! Not voicing or acknowledging your needs means that you are probably tolerating more than you should. Find out what you're putting up with and zap those tolerations. By doing so, you're giving yourself the message that you're worth it.

15. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. 1 | 15 Make positive contributions to others. This doesn't mean that you constantly do for others what they could be doing for themselves. But when you do make a positive contribution to others, you begin to feel more valuable, which increases your sense of your own value and raises your self esteem. Involve yourself in work and activities that you love. So many people with low self esteem stop doing those activities that they most enjoy. Even if you're not in a position to make immediate changes in your career, you can still devote some of your leisure time to enjoyable hobbies and activities. Start taking action! The universe rewards action. Backing away and avoiding challenges means that your self esteem muscles become weak and flabby. When you start to take action - regardless of the outcome - you will start to feel better about yourself, develop your self confidence and raise your self esteem.