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Innate Abilities

In David Foster Wallaces speechIn His Own Words, Wallace asserts that it is essential

to, make a conscious decision about how to think and what to pay attention to,(4) in order to

overcome our inert default setting(4). Based on Wallaces speech I can formulate that this

intellectual process requires a great amount of disciplinary thinking and a commitment towards

an elevated mindset; thus illustrating that a defining moment in a persons lifeis a forced

experience that invokes a constructive disciplinary state upon ones mind continually over a long

period of time so that self-discipline leads to personal success.

In the book,The Other Wes Moore

, by author Wes Moore, Moore states that after his

mother sent him off to military school he realized that this new environment held, a real

respect (96), that was further supported when he witnessed, a peer, demand that much respect

from his people (9). The respect that Moore observed had a huge impact upon him in a way that

began to force him to reshape the way he thought about the definition of respect and what it truly

meant. Obviously, the military school was extremely disciplinary in a physical aspect; yet, it

pales in comparison to the effect that the rigid lifestyle had upon Moores mental state.This

situation, although forced upon him initially, ultimately brought out an inert leadership ability in

Moore that was only previously touched upon by the death of father at a young age, when he was

forced to become the man of the house. Thus his passive ability to lead was forced to emerge

until it eventually became a permanent part of Moores attitude and overall mindset.

In the story of Frank McCourts life, titledAngelas Ashes, McCourt is forced into a

situation where he finds it necessary to leave his family after his mother seemingly neglects him

for his uncle who is taking of advantage of her. Departing and embarking forward, McCourt is

forced to depend solely on himself in order to survive on his own. This struggle in a new

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environment of independence forced McCourt to evolve his thinking in a way that allowed him

to succeed without others. Over the course of many years this revelation in his life proved to

reshape McCourts mindset in aself-sufficient, positive manner, which ultimately transformed

him into a young man bound for America.

Personally, third grade year, my parents forced me to begin taking piano lessons from a

strict elderly lady; where success meant countless hours of practice a week. Forced into this

situation, I dreaded practicing, I dreaded lessons, I dreaded the piano in general; yet, I

subconsciously absorbed the discipline and perfectionism my teacher, Mrs. Han, displayed to me

each week. This sense of discipline engaged my mind in a way that allowed me to excel through

school in a rapidly self-sufficient way. My mindset on life rapidly evolved to a perfectionist style

that has remained with me all throughout life. I have spent over a decade in forced musical

situations, yet my process of thinking has now evolved from a timid, passive process, into a self-

driven and motivating outlook on life that has allowed me to have enormous self-assurance in

myself.

As illustrated, a defining moment in an individuals life is not a simple process or

undergoing. It is the result of an initial forced situation that leads to contamination, and only

later, possibly as long as decades, allows redemption and an inner self-perseverance to attribute

to a persons success, confidence, and highly evolved mindset.This forced situation allows an

inert, or passive, quality in a person that they most likely excel at to evolve and be brought out

through rigorous discipline, demanding that through self-discovery they realize this innate

ability.

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Bibliography

Angelas Ashes. Dir. Alan Parker. Paramount Pictures, 1999. DVD

Moore,Wes. The Other Wes Moore.New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2010. Print

Wallace, David. 2005 Kenyon College Commencement Address. Kenyon College. Gambier,

Ohio. 2005