The Overachievers: Post #3

One thing I learned about in this book is ways you can deal with stress. One student featured in the book, Audrey, has panic attacks leading up to the SAT's. Her dad takes away her vocabulary flashcards until she promises not to study until the test. This happens two days before the test because he wants her to be relaxed and have a clear head. "Abruptly, Audrey's father grabbed the vocabulary cards.'You're done with these,' he said. 'It's a mental game, and I know you can do it. But you can't do this to yourself. You did this for the PSAT. You can't do it again'"(p.289)
Ryland is another teen who is stressed out. He became depressed due to this stress. "The pressure was enormous. Ryland got overwhelmed and put off homework and studying because he didn't want the stress to suffocate him. ... Freshman year, his depression had caused him to fall behind. ..."(p.250) Ryland has problems with his stress and this caused his depression to worsen.
One more example from Audrey that displays stress perfectly can be found. "'You're not sick. You're making yourself sick,' her mother replied with compassion. ' You know you psych yourself out. You have to stop letting your stress get to you." Audrey worked herself up over grades so much to the point of sickness. To deal with stress, the book has shown me that you need to relax. If you focus too long on one thing, it can be detrimental to your efforts. Relaxation allows us to absorb the information, then go back for more. We don't cram everything into our heads when we relax.

The book has enlightened me in the study of overachieving. I understood people stressed themselves out over grades, and I knew what a perfectionist was. I never knew that such things could be so harmful to people. Perfectionists sometimes hurt themselves due to what they call not good enough. "A high-achieving Massachusetts senior told me she slit her wrists because of 'the feeling that I wasn't perfect. If I wasn't good enough to be perfect, I wasn't good enough to be alive.'" Statements like that show how dangerous overachieving can be, as these people are convinced that their best will never be good enough and only perfection is acceptable. This book has shown me how wanting to do well is good, but to overachieve can end up being a bad thing. As shown previously, students will go to extreme lengths, whether emotional or physical, to satisfy their needs of self-punishment due to imperfection.

The author had no specifically stated thesis. Each chapter taught a new lesson on a different perspective of overachieving. Each chapter talked about topics such as stress, competitive learning environments, etc. The author clearly made her point on the negative effects of overachieving. I would recommend this book to peers because it educates, demonstrates exmples through events or feelings that are part of overachieving behaviors. The students written about as examples show us the dangers of overachieving from hurting oneself to feeling like your best is never good enough. The book is a wake-up call to readers on the dangers found in pressure from other students as well as parents and the educational system.

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