求教: 如何挖掘"unique personal history, values, life experiences"

yoko2005

这几天写到tuck的essay.最后一题是"How will your unique personal history, values, and/or life experiences contribute to the culture at Tuck"
想来想去, 觉得自已好像不是什么unique的人啊, 上学、工作一路走来似乎也不是什么独特的经历。
想听听大家对这个问题怎么看的，从哪些方面挖掘自已的uniqueness呢？

bigjoe

你有没有特别的爱好，或者技能？

JonFrank

Hello there! It would be my pleasure to help you here.  First of all, you need to give yourself some credit—nobody will ever write about an experience that is truly unique.  The adcom has heard it all before.  My mom is sick, I moved around a lot when I was eleven, I cured cancer when I was 18, I led a team, I sang opera at Carnegie Hall, etc.  You cant say anything that they haven’t heard before.  Nobody is truly “unique” in terms of their experiences.  They have read millions of essays.

So.  How do you make yourself seem unique in your essays?  It is all in your unique PERSPECTIVE.  Let me give you an example.  Lets assume that twenty applicants this year will be applying, who all came from the same tiiiiny little town in Madagascar.  Only one of the 20 will get in.  Why?   Not because of his unique experience, but from his unique perspective.  Everyone else from the town will write in their app, “I have come so far, from this small town.  Everything is so different from it was when I grew up.”  19 out of 20 people will write that same story.  But then the 20th person will come along.  And he will say something just a bit more thoughtful.  Just a bit more interesting.  UNIQUE.  He will say, “I have come so far, from this small town. And while everything looks so different, it is not.  In fact when you strip away all the superficial “differences,” everyone is deep down inside, the SAME.  We all share the same goals, hopes, and dreams.  Yes we are from different sides of the world, but I have been more amazed at our similarities, than by our differences.”

That is wise.  That is unique.  That is unusual.  Don’t worry about finding unique experiences—find a fresh, unique perspective on YOUR experience.

Hope this helps.

Jon Frank

Knockoff

Jon，good one！

yoko2005

Thank you Jon, 谢谢宁老师.

I think I start to recognize my uniqueness.