You can never be a good journalist.” This was a statement made by my course in-charge to me while inquiring about my absence from the class. Though it seemed normal but the impact was enormous.

I begin to wonder why she said this to me? Was it because I did not have the guts to come up myself and inquire about her schedule for the next day’s class or it was due to my coward behaviour.

Let me tell you why my teacher made this remark. I was not a bad student but yes, sometimes I do procrastinate. That day I had not completed my assignment and skipped her class for this reason. I had done that to avoid being humiliated in front of my whole class. However, there are many others too who have gone through this experience of listening to derogatoryremarks from their teachers. Moreover, there are many fears that stop us from doing things which we really want to do.

But one who aspires to become a journalist in his/her future, needs to meet deadlines. You have to complete your work in a given time and if you cannot deliver, you are not suitable for the job because the printing of a paper cannot be stopped because your article was submitted late. Though I am not good at following deadlines, this is not a good trait because if one wants to achieve success in anything, one has to be punctual as well as fearless.

However, these kinds of statements addressed to us in our schools and colleges are not to de-motivate us, it is just to make us realise and prepare us for the future; professional life is more callous than the remarks of our teachers.

On the other hand, sometimes I do wonder why practical life is so harsh. Every person does not possess the same qualities, there are some who take these inconsiderate remarks in a positive sense but there are few who just give up.

I do know that I won’t give up because the only way to achieve success is to make oneself believe that nothing is so huge that it can dominate you. Every day is a task for us to conquer our fear and that can only be done if we believe in ourselves.

Ralph Waldo Emerson has aptly said: “He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learnt the secret of life.”