People say you cannot listen to music and do homework, but my entire school career disagrees with that. I understand multitasking is a myth, and rather than our brain evenly dividing our attention to multiple things, we give most of our attention to one thing and switch continuously. But this is exactly why studying and doing homework with music has helped me achieve academic success. The truth is, some classes are boring. I enjoy learning, but if I was read chapters on plant structures as a kid, my parents would have no problem putting me to sleep. To counter this, I listen to music. Music served two purposes. First, I grew up in a busy household that was very noisy. There was no private space for homework, so I was putting more effort into focusing than actually doing my work. The music conglomerates the ruckus into one sound that I've learned to ignore. The second purpose is to keep me entertained. Getting fatigued while studying is the biggest demotivator. The music catches me and fuels me to continue working. In every study method I've seen, they encourage short breaks. This is exactly what I am doing. Some breaks are thirty seconds others are a full three minutes. I am not the only one to do this either. Bobby Fischer, Chess Grandmaster and Chess World Champion from 1972-1975, said he listened to rock music to study Chess. Chess! A game where you have endless options resulting in long spouts of concentration, he studied while listening to one of the grungiest, noisy, and combustious music genres.

My why has to do with the bettering of myself and my community. As the firstborn of a teen mom; who left for work when the sun rose and returned when it left, I have been tasked with the supervision of my two younger siblings. My father was not around to pick up what my mom could not, so starting from a young age, I stepped up. Not to take away from her, if we could see responsibility, she was benching 800. I was also a role model to my younger siblings. Since elementary, I have been in leadership programs, gifted and talented and, other clubs to inspire them to do better. As they are doing their homework, I am doing mines to poke at their curiosity; to show them that their education is dire. I did everything in school to expose them to everything so that even if school was not in their future, an instrument or sports could be. Because of this, and that I take on everything myself, I became stressed and anxious. I felt a lot of pressure from everyone around me to be the best. I had a reputation to uphold in the eyes of my mother, siblings, teachers, and other individuals who believed in me. My mother had to rely on me because I was her last resort; my siblings had to rely on me without knowing it because they did not know any better. I did not talk to anyone about my stress and emotions because I felt like a burden every time my mother spent money on me, I felt like a burden every time I ate the last of the cereal, I felt like a burden every time I forgot to take out the trash. Getting into the high school I am at now has helped me redevelop my skills. It took me a lot of time and effort, but as more work came the, more confident I became in myself to complete the tasks at hand. I learned a lot from my past experiences. I do not have to do everything myself, others are willing to help, and my mental health should be my top priority because getting overwhelmed and crashing will bring everything I have worked towards to a halt as they crash with me. I have not only bettered myself. I am an active member in my community, excluding this past year for safety, and I have accepted more responsibility. Being inspirational and helping others has been integrated into my personality since I was a toddler. I have seen the positive impacts that come from helping others and being a role model in someone else's eyes. It brings me an unmatched joy when I can help someone whether it be with math, life, or even where to go. It has been for these reasons that I have been elected class president for the last two years. I have used this platform to continue helping others get through the stress that comes with life.