Chapter Introduction
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Celebrating Your Success and Connecting to Your Future
Success, Then and Now: Assess Your ACES Progress
Dig Deeper: Reflect on the Specifics of Your Progress
Full Speed Ahead! Prepare for Continued Academic Success
Celebrate Success and Connect to Your Future — at Work
My Personal Success Plan
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If you’re reading this chapter, that means you’re almost finished with the term. Congratulations! This is a good time to reflect on how much you’ve learned and to take pride in your successes. Think of all the goals you’ve set for yourself and achieved. Consider how well prepared you are for your remaining terms in college. Imagine what a great impression you’ll make when you interview for an exciting new job. You have a lot to celebrate!
This is also a good time to think about your future. What challenges lie ahead for you, both in college and in your work life? Are you more excited about some courses than about others? Are there work experiences you’d like to gain?
In this class you’ve had the opportunity to spend time each week learning about yourself and developing the skills and attitudes critical to your success at school and at work. Chances are, you’ll probably never take a course like this again. So how will you sustain the good habits you’ve developed?
The fact is, what you’ve learned in this class transfers over to other classes you take and to the jobs you pursue. If you keep practicing the skills and mind-sets you developed this term, you’ll continue achieving successes. As a result, your confidence will keep growing. It won’t always be easy, but the solid foundation you’ve built will carry you through even the toughest times. The key is to make connections between what you’ve learned in this class and the academic and career choices you’ll make in the future.
This chapter helps you make those connections. First, we revisit many of the concepts we explored over the term, and you’ll think metacognitively about your accomplishments and experiences. Then we turn to the challenges and choices that lie ahead of you — academically and professionally — and look at strategies for sustaining your success in the years to come. In fact, the structure of this chapter matches the structure you’ll use to stay successful in life: Reflect on and learn from the past, then use the resulting insights to prepare for the future.
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