Ever since I can remember, I have tried to be great at everything I do. My mom constantly tells me, “Matthew, you’re biting off more than you can chew!` worrying that I might wear myself out. I try to listen to her but I really do enjoy engaging in a great deal of distinct activities outside of school; whether it’s marching band, volleyball, academic enrichment or even video games, I constantly participate in competition-based hobbies and take pride in going beyond what is expected of me. This inner drive for competitiveness, I believe, has stemmed from my love for proving people that doubt me wrong and doing what others would say is impossible.
I remember specifically throughout my sophomore year that maintaining my trumpet practice habit of at least forty-five minutes everyday was a considerable challenge. With vigorous AP classes to keep up with, combined with volleyball and marching band consuming much of my time, finding the energy to sit down and practice was often a grueling endeavor….
As a freshman, with previous experience playing volleyball in middle school and at the beach, this essence of competition was very attractive to me and so I tried out and made the junior varsity team. Last year, during my club season, after sitting on the bench for the first part of the year, my coach recognized my improvement and hard work and gave me the starting role for the second half of the season. The little voice in my head telling me `you’ll never make it!` or `you’re not good enough!” inspired (and continues to inspire) me to persistently improve every aspect of my playing during practice and such an attention to detail, combined with my inner motivation to improve, lead to my…