Author: Vanessa Martinez

My former teacher told me that I am a big fish in a small pond because I was always on top of my class. So, in my first few days in College, I lived up to this mentality. I became so confident that I answered the self assessment without really considering my abilities because these qualities are what my former teacher told me that I’m good at.

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However, an acquaintance of mine saw my answers and she made me think about my self assessments. She pointed out that in order for me to honestly rate myself, I should analyze myself from my perspective alone and not from that of other people.

I realized that she was right. I was slightly embarrassed because some of my answers do not really reflect my skills. Maybe I was just so used to hearing people complement me because I was an honor student that I became biased with my self evaluation. At that time, I knew I came to a realization of where I should be.

I also realized that I am not a big fish in a small pond nor am I a small fish in a big pond. People tend to say these things in college just to ease their mind. These sayings, for me, are just a matter of perspective. “Pool sizes” and identifying yoursef as a “big” or “small fish” are just concepts made in order for us to only stay at those two classifications.

Instead of aspiring to be a big or small fish, we should just aspire to be the best fish that we can. We should not let someone control us by feeding us with lies and false hopes. A great “fish” does not only take note of its surroundings, it also examines itself to be able to be the best it can be. We can be more productive if we do not judge ourselves as either big or small fish as both will still struggle regardless of the size of the water.

Even though college is such a big leap from high school, and there are a myriad of students who are greater than me in so many ways, I should not feel like I shouldn’t be where I am today. I will improve my skills to be able to be a best media writer, jut like a great fish that can swim in any water.

Many use the term “development” without really knowing what it means. Development is a term directly associated with the words growth and positive changes. It means utilizing our knowledge, abilities and capabilities to achieve an end goal. In our society, however, the zenith of power lies mainly from people who misinterpret the term “development” and thus, cannot come up with a development-oriented topic.

To be able to achieve development, we must formulate development-oriented topics. We can do this by understanding what constitutes a development-oriented topic.

What makes a topic development-oriented?

1. It has a significant IMPACT to everyone – A development-oriented topic goes beyond the boundaries of society. It must seek to bring change not only in a particular group or organization but to all people in general. Everyone should be able to benefit from it.
2. It is ACHIEVABLE – The topic should be realistic enough for it to be achievable. It should be attainable for it to be successful. It must not outstretch our capabilities and deliver us to further constraints.
3. It addresses RELEVANT issues in the society – To be able to make people care about the topic, its relevance is a must. A topic’s relevance will make it more prominent and it will increase the chance for people to remember your topic.
4. It adheres to the Sustainable Development Goals – A development-oriented topic adheres to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) because the SDGs will offer a road map or a blueprint of what should be done in the future.

Sustainable development is the pathway to the future we want for all. It offers a framework to generate economic growth, achieve social justice, exercise environmental stewardship and strengthen governance.

Ban Ki-moon

Development should start on us and on the development-oriented topic that we chose. Today is not just any other day. This day, we should start the development. Today, we should get the ball rolling.

In a place where honor and excellence meet at the end of the crossroads, a lonesome girl is wandering aimlessly while carrying a jar of hope on her beaten arms. The lava-stained sky seems to sympathize with her withering tears.  Feelings of fear and doubt are clouding her mind. She loathes herself for failing to meet everyone’s expectations. From time to time, she wishes she would just disappear from this dim colored world.

After years of billowing with the breeze, she now aims for the sky. She strives even harder to prove to everyone she isn’t as bad as they think she is. At some point, a recollection of bad experiences from her peers crosses her mind but she chooses to ignore those. No matter how bad they think her chosen path is, she will never cease in improving until they realize they said the wrong things about her and her chosen path. To thrive and to survive is her adage. Like a wildflower in the wake of extinction, she will find her way out of this endless conundrum she belongs in.

Her name is Vanessa G. Martinez, a freshman under BS Development Communication. Coming from a school where everyone is a genius, she felt as though she was an outcast. She lost herself together with her dreams. Just being at the sidelines made her unable to grasp what direction her life will take in the future. Staring at the vast horizon, she wondered what life had in its sleeves for a lost person like her. Her life may be hard, but it taught her to be tough. Her passion in writing started blazing again when she found herself. She realized right after that to be able to do what you love, you must first find yourself. Find the fire burning deep inside you and never listen to the negative comments of the people who try to bring you down.

In a place where honor and excellence meet at the end of the crossroads, there was once a lonesome girl wandering aimlessly while carrying a jar of hope on her beaten arms. The lava-stained sky seemed to sympathize with her withering tears.  Feelings of fear and doubt were clouding her mind. She loathed herself back then for failing to meet everyone’s expectations. From time to time, she wished she would just disappear from this dim colored world, but now, after she have founded herself, she now aspires to continue her passion in writing. She now awaits what life has in its sleeves for a changed person like her.