Clarke 1 Karen Clarke Professor Weatbrook English 1010 April 30, 2014 March to The beat of Your Own

Drum Life is all about choices. We all hold the power to shape our life into whatever we see fit to provide our own happiness. Even though society is a big factor in the way things turn out. Why should anyone elses expectation have the authority to tell us how to advance in our career, nurture our body, or even what tools to use to enhance our knowledge. Along with the freedom of choice comes accountability. A concern of mine is weather I need college to be successful. It seems that at this moment in time in order to get a decent job with appropriate pay, a college degree is a must. I would say that I disagree with that. According to an article I recently read it should be a personal decision. The article Are Too Many People Going to College? By Charles Murray discusses the fact that we dont all learn best in the same environment. As of right now I take the title of Domestic Engineer or as some would call it a Homemaker. I know some would argue that it isnt a real job but for me that is my best option. I have tried working out in the field but my options are very limited because of my education level. The pay I am offered is not worth leaving my children only to hand over most of my paycheck to the daycare center. Hence why I started my journey through college. This has made me feel as if I need to jump through hoops just to prove my abilities and what I can offer. Even though college is a great starting point for some, others benefit more by getting into a job, gaining experience and advancing into their career. A great example for

Clarke 2 that is a technology wiz. Most of the time the people that go into the field already have a great understanding of that field but end up having to go to college to prove that they know what they are doing. The problem is that in order to be considered for most jobs you must obtain a degree, just to get your foot in the door. But what is to say that someone without a degree that has more experience or a natural ability is less desirable then someone whom has a bachelors degree with little experience. The truth is that the person with an education to back them up is more likely to get the job or even a pay raise. Not to discredit anyone with ambitions of receiving a college degree because that takes a lot of hard work and dedication. I guess the bottom line is as Murray says A good way to make sure you always find work is to be among the best at what you do (235). Basically what I take from that is to pay attention to your own natural abilities and the job market would be much easier to conquer, not to mention more enjoyable. I feel that society can put a lot of pressure on us to be successful but having a big title with a big paycheck should not define our success. Coming home from work happy with what you have accomplished seems more successful then the big house on the hill. Another issue that I hear about on a daily basis is how to properly feed my body. Like David Zinczenko expressed in his essay Dont Blame the Eater, We have the choice of going out of our way to access healthier food or we could take the cheap and easy way and stop at one of the many fast food joints near by. It is taking a great toll on our health. Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes is at an all time high because of our poor diet choices. Even though Fast-Food companies hold some of the blame the real accountability is our own. We make the choice of cheap and easy or healthy and time. We need to decide what is more important to ourselves and hold ourselves responsible for our own choices.

Clarke 3 Health is a tricky subject to bring up because genetics play such a big part in our health. Sure there are some pretty good guidelines but it shouldnt be the government, Doctors, or our parents the one to tell us how to best take care of ourselves. That should be our own responsibility. By paying attention to the way our body reacts to certain diets we can find what works best for us. Rather then following a diet that my neighbor told me works wonders for her. And last but not least I would like to point out something that made a big impact in my life by teaching me how to communicate with the people around me. Many would argue that television is a waist of time, and that it can make you lazy. In the article by Steve Johnson Watching TV Makes You Smarter points out that television series have become much more complex and beneficial as a tool to keep our brain active. I have to say that I agree with this theory. Television was a gadget that I found very useful while I was learning to speak English. My native language is Spanish. I have lived in the United States for the majority of my life and brought up in a home where only Spanish was spoken. Television was an easy way for me to develop speech and comprehension. In a research article by Janelle Weaver she states that in educational shows such as Sesame Street are designed to enhance development in childrens brains. Weaver States children showed adult-like brain responses while watching clips for Sesame Street predicted their performance on math and verbal IQ tests. In this experiment Weaver documented that 27 children 4-11 years of age watched a 20-minute Sesame Street video with clips of various topic, including letters and numbers. Afterward the children took standardized test for mathematics and verbal IQ, she notes. In their results, Weaver adds, children that were exposed to real

Clarke 4 world education television such as Sesame Street had higher test scores and more adult-like pattern of neural responses. In conclusion to what I am trying to say. Not everybody is the same. What is right in societies standards may not be the most beneficial for us. Taking the time to know our true selves can only enhance our opportunity to happiness. Education, Nutrition, and the technology we use to strengthen our abilities should be our choice, as long as we are willing to take accountability.

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Works Cited Johnson, Steve. Watching TV Makes You Smarter. They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing with readings. Second Edition. Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 277-294. Print. Murray, Charles. Are Too Many People Going to College? They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing with readings. Second Edition. Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 223-242. Print. Weaver, Janelle. Sesame Street Provides Lessons About Natural Brain Development In Children. Plos Biology 11.1 (2013): 1. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Apr. Zinczenko, David. Dont Blame the Eater. They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing with readings. Second Edition. Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2012.391-394. Print.