Student Success Statement: Alan Stein

"Success is not an accident. Success is actually a choice. Are the habits you have today on par with the dreams you have tomorrow?"

Dreams are not an illusion. You can always achieve them no matter what your obstacle is. You can't wake one day and decide to be good at something. For some people it takes practice but even if you are a natural at something you need practice to perfect your art and be successful. My dream is to be published before I'm 20 years old. I will do this by practicing my writing. I have a journal that I write in almost everyday. I have also signed up for writing workshops this summer. As much as I'd hope that I didn't have to work to get published, I know that it is almost impossible to get published without practicing my art. Like Stephen Curry I will work for my goal everyday until I have reached it.

Student Success Statement: Thomas Carlyle

"A man without a goal is like a ship without a rudder."

This statement is saying that a person without a goal has no direction. They will go through life being useless because they can't think of how they would like to shape their future. This is dangerous because how can someone even survive without knowing what they want to do.

This type of goal can be anything, whether it be graduating High school, going to university, or finding a job that doesn't require a college diploma. It is simply impossible to live life without any goals at all.

Student Success Statement: Dennis Prager

"The most important thing you will ever have is good values."

Good values are a mix of everything that makes a person good. So instead of just having one or two of these qualities have them all. Have good values is important because it betters you as a person. You will be more positive and make everyone else around you positive. You will also attract people who also have good values so you'd have more friends with good values. Values are what help us make good decision. Having good values you will decide not to steal or kill or anything of the such. It helps us differentiate right from wrong.  

Student Success Statement: Wilford Woodruff

"Nothing is ever gained in doing what's wrong."

This statement tells us that, why do something wrong when you won't get anything good out of it. You do get something out of doing what is wrong but it is never pleasant. Think of karma when you do good things, good things happen. When you do bad things, bad things happen. This is what happens when you make a  decision. You either do something wrong and it blows up in your face or you do something good and you get good back.

Student Success Statement:Dr. Laura Schlessinger

"The reward for doing right is mostly an internal phenomenon: self-respect, dignity (self-worth), integrity, and self-esteem."

This quote is saying that the reward for doing right are more of an emotional thing than a material thing. You can't buy self-respect and dignity. You must earn it just like you would earn the respect of others by showing them how responsible you are. If you see an old lady standing on the bus it's a given that you should stand up and give her your seat. Imagine how better you'll feel once you've done this good deed.

Student Success Statement: Alan Paton

"When a deep injury is done to us, we never recover until we forgive."

This statement is telling us to forgive and forget. Living a life seeking for revenge is no way to live. We must remember that we are all human. We were all created with flaws. Not only should we learn to live with these flaws of ours but we must also learn to accepted peoples flaws. You need to understand why that person made that mistake. We have to be understanding of one another. Before you go off on someone for something they did to you ask yourself, "Why did they do this?" Then ask yourself, "Is this really what they deserve?"

Student Success Statement: Thomas S. Monson

"Dare to stand alone."
So many people now a days are afraid to make their own choices. Out of peer pressure they decide not to do what's right and decide to be a follower. There is a fine line to when you can be a follower. If you are following someone who makes good choices, is studious, and kind then that is amazing. Go ahead and follow all you want. When your friends want you to do something illegal with them or just bad then you shouldn't be friends with those people. They will only lead you to trouble. Besides who likes being a follower anyways. You should be the leader and be the one to stand up and make good choices.

Student Success Statement: Pam Knox

"It's a great moment when someone has character to step up and do the right thing at the right time."

Imagined being blamed of something you had no part of. As much as you implore the person blaming you to believe that you couldn't have blamed you for that thing, the refuse to listen and are insistent that you are to blame. Then suddenly someone steps up. They explain that they are to blame. There is a sense of relief that comes upon you when someone tells the truth. First of all you might think. 'Thank goodness, I won't be getting in trouble, because the real culprit has stepped up'. What we should be thinking is 'Wow, it must have taken a lot of courage to tell the truth!' If I were in this situation I would firstly thank the person, because were it not for them I would still be getting in trouble.

Student Success Statement: Alexander Hamilton

"A promise must never be broken."

This, in a way reminds me of Harry Potter. In the very popular series by JK Rowling there is a type of promise made called an unbreakable promise. Basically if you break this promise you will die. Dying if the promise is broken is a way to encourage that that promise is kept. I don't think there should be any form of encouragement to keep a promise it should just be common sense to keep a promise. For example, if your best friend tells you a secret that won't lead to the harm of herself or anyone else and you promise that  you won't tell it should just be a given that you shouldn't tell. If you tell your mom and you know she won't leak it, it is still not okay. If you break a promise you are breaking trust.

Student Success Statement: Henry David Thoreau

"Goodness is the only investment that never fails."

Making an investment with money is a risk. You'll either get rich or die trying. The thing about investments with money is that you don't know if you'll win or lose. When you do good and give back that is an investment that in no way will ever hurt you. If you decide to do a good deed that person will remember the goodness you did for them. They don't have to repay you. They could give back to someone else in need. In that way you will possibly be starting a chain reaction of good deeds and decrease worldsuck.

Student Success Statement: Theodore Hesburgh

"My basic principle is that you don't make decisions because they are easy; you don't make them because they are cheap; you don't make them because they're popular; you make them because they're right"

This quote is basically saying that the only reason we do things is because it is the right thing to do. I believe that in our subconscious mind we do certain things because they are right. It is not until we second guess our decisions that we start to wonder if we will get more popular if we make that decision. We ask ourselves which decision will better advantage us. I do thing people do things for reasons that aren't because it is right. However, I do believe we do do things for selfish purpose even if our first idea was right.

Student Success Statement: Joseph Smith

"It is our duty to concentrate all our influence to make popular that which is sound and good, and unpopular that which is unsound."

This quote means that we have to popularize and normalize things that are good for you and the people around you. Doing good things or actions that you do that aren't selfish are viewed as strange and most people won't do them because they fear ridicule. If we make good deeds popular more people would do good deeds without hesitance.

Student Success Statement: Abraham Lincoln

"I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong."

Abraham Lincoln says in this quote that he will always do what's right and will support anyone who does the same. He will not support liars and cheaters. I do this as well. If I know what my friends are doing is right I will support them 100%. If I know what they are doing is wrong I will try to convince not to do it, and if that doesn't work I will not show my support for that friend. It is because of this that I have lost friends, but it is not much of a loos and more of a gain because I don't like to surround myself with cheaters and liars.

Student Success Statement: Tyler Haws

"I trust that my hard work will pay off."

This quote is great for motivation especially when you know about Tyler's background. Tyler was devastated after being cut off his basketball team and instead of moping around he actually tried to get better and it worked for him. He now plays for BYU. I think that if more people applied this to their lives it wouldn't matter how bad you are at something or if you have natural talent. If you work hard for something anything is possible but if you don't try you are doomed to fail. Working Hard for something also allows risks which come with the best outcomes.

Student Success Statement: Brigham Young

"True independence and freedom can only exist in what's right."

You will only achieve freedom and independence when you are doing the right thing. For example if you are selling drugs on the street you will never feel free or independent. You will not feel free because you will always be looking behind your back making sure you aren't being followed. You will end up being dependent in the way that you won't know how else to make a living. The same goes for anything bad that you do. This also how you can identify something wrong. If you feel neither independent nor free it can't be right.

Student Success Statement: George Chapman

"They're only truly great who are truly good."

This quote tells you that greatness and goodness correspond with one another. You can't have one trait on its own. No matter what if you are not good you will never achieve greatness. If you are good you can reach for the stars. If you are not doing good you can't even reach the door. As long as you are doing good you can do great things.

Student Success Statement: George Mitchell

"Many think that the short term gain will be worth the long term pain, but it isn't. In addition, using steroids is cheating, and there is nothing worse in sports than a cheater. Don't do it."

Winning a game only takes up seconds of your life but it does affect the rest of your life, especially if you cheat. Guilt from cheating will affect you inside and out. You will be stressed because you want to confess about what you did but you don't want to tell because everything will be taken away from you. When your stressed people will know something is wrong then they'll get suspicious and the truth will come out. if you don't cheat you won't have to worry about this because you know you won fair and square so you deserve it as opposed to a person who will have winning unfairly in the back of their minds for the rest of their life. Finally, winning isn't everything you will go on with your life after you've won so if you do things fairly at least you can go back and remember what you won with a clean conscience.

Student Success Statement: Dale Murphy

"I won't cheat."

This is a motto that everyone should live by because once you start cheating you can't stop. When you are in school it is easy to cheat. You can change a few words to what you copied in the questions you were given as assignment and get away with it. But as you go on to school you are compelled to continue cheating to get a grade. Once you are in college you are done for and you will get what you deserve. I think that this motto shouldn't be used so that any person can feel better or that someone will compensate them at the end for not cheating but because it is the right thing to do.

Student Success Statement: Dale Murphy

"Character matters most."

This quote means that it doesn't matter what you do oar the accomplishments you make but how you got there. If you made it to the type by cheating and lying that wouldn't be a good thing. All your accomplishments would go down the toilet because of this. If you were honest and you didn't lie or steal to get to the top then that is what matters because you deserve everything you have achieved unlike those who decided to take the easy way. The easy way never justifies a wrong doing.

Student Success Statement: Benjamin Franklin

"Great beauty, great strength, and great riches are really truly of no great use; a right heart exceeds all."

Beauty fades, strength will definitely not last, and when we all die we will not take our money with us. This is why it is important to be kind to one another. What truly matters is the kindness that comes in the heart. How will any god accept you into their heaven if you are a bad person. How will they accept you if you have cheated and lied to keep a possession, or anything like that while you were alive. All of our material possessions won't matter because when you are off this earth you aren't going to take any of it with you. Besides not being kind makes you ugly. Not being kind makes you weak.