Write, Read, Edit, Repeat

My morning started off with a cookie today. I'm hoping the sugar kicks in and wakes me up, but it is more likely that it drains me more. I'm sure my eyes are bloodshot, however without a mirror, I can't tell. After hours of work, I have completed my third edit. Besides some grammar, I feel that essays one and two are complete. YAY!! Essay three, by far, has been my weakest link. I think it has come a long way, but I'm not sure if it is "there" and unfortunately, I don't have the time to get it "there". I like the stories that I used for essay four. I feel that they show another side of me. One that is a bit more relaxed and here to have fun as well as enjoy the people around me.

I will admit that these essays took longer than anticipated. I also did not realize that I would take so much from my review sessions with my editor and I wish I had planned better to take advantage of other resources I have. I'd say, if I was to do it over again, I would give myself more time for the next schools. Unfortunately, D-day for those applications is Nov. 1st. Looks like it is going to be a busy two weeks with lots of essays - write, read, edit, revise, repeat.

I have found that brainstorming for the essays levels after the first set is almost final. I feel that ideas come to me quicker than when I first started and I have been told that the essays should get easier as you write. We'll see.

My biggest problem with writing is that I get excited about schools as I write and transitioning into the framework of another school is not always easy. Outlining the school may give me good insight and make it easier to focus on the culture of the school. It is this culture that I strive to understand because in the end, all top programs provide solid foundations. You go to a school for the people and the culture. Plus, this understanding helps answer the question WHY. Each school wants to know your motivations for applying to that specific school.

On the same note, I took a piece of paper and wrote 3 words on it. WHY, HOW, and MOTIVATION. If nothing else, these three concepts need to be expressed, blatantly. If these concepts are lost in translation, you become just another applicant in their pool. You have to make sure that every sentence has a purpose.

Back to work.