Essay: This I believe

What do I believe in? Many things. Many people believe in many things, some people, selfish, just believe in material objects and possessions which will benefit them more, however, some other people may believe in systems which they hope would bring about a better world, such as liberty and communism. Yet, some people believe in values and qualities, and believe that these qualities are what will make the world better, if only people started embodying these qualities. These people do not dream up of big ambitions, but instead, seek to embody these qualities themselves in order to serve the world better and make the world a better place. I belong in the third category.

I believe in responsibility. I believe that everyone should fulfil one's duty and do it well. One should not give excuses and try to shy away from one's duty merely because it may be hard. I believe that everyone has a duty to the world, be it in realistic terms, from the garbage cleaner to the software developer, who should do their jobs well in order to make the world a better place, or in idealistic terms, where everyone should serve people out of their working place, from simple things such as giving up one's seat in public transport to helping out the community through voluntary work, or donating money for charity. Do I practice responsibility? I believe I do. I complete work that is assigned to me, and also serve my duty to the community and society. Do other people embody this quality? Sadly, I have to say no. Too many people in the world all try to find ways to benefit themselves, and what is the easiest way to do that? It is to push one's duty to other people so that one has a reduced workload and can have a higher quality of life. How is this responsibility? If one is assigned work to do, one should do it, as it was assigned in the belief that one would complete the work. If everyone were to neglect their duty and not be responsible, what would society turn into?

I also believe in excellence. I believe that when doing one’s duty and carrying out one’s responsibility, one should always try to achieve the best that they can, even if it means more work. I believe that one should always be able so sign one’s work with pride. Excellence to me is also progress, as when one is continuously trying to excel in something, one is also at the same time progressing. However, when I talk about excellence and progress, I do not merely mean individual progress, and individual excellence. I believe that everyone should help each other succeed, and together, as a whole, as one body, move forward and progress and excel. Let us say, for example, a class. When handing up their homework and assignments, a student should, in my opinion, always hand up the best piece of work they can achieve, and not the bare minimal so that they can use the extra time to do leisure activities, such as playing computer games. Also, although there may be some students who are outcasts, though the intensity of being outcast varies from class to class, I think that the students in the class should still help the outcast when he needs help. Students stronger at a subject should help students weaker at a subject. In this way, the class can progress as a whole, and excel as one. Do I practice excellence? I must admit, not always. I try to create the best piece of work I can, but sometimes, it is truly frustrating when in trying to create an excellent piece of work, everything starts failing, and with this frustration, I am occasionally not motivated to put in my entire best. I will also help other people so that an entire body can progress as one. Though I may not voluntarily do it, however, if I am assigned to a group, even with members I dislike, I would still do my duty and try to create the best possible work with them.

Lastly, I believe in respect. In the modern world it is today, where there is a much greater freedom for speech, people are starting to get complacent and even start splitting hairs with their superiors. For example, children nowadays are more likely to argue and disobey their parents; the evidence is present in many articles written either by the children, or by other people. It is evident that people are becoming more rebellious and are making use of their freedom to try and get everything done their way. Of course, freedom of speech is not a bad thing, and sometimes, a different perspective is welcome. However, it depends on how it is phrased. Nowadays, people are showing lesser respect to others. For example, a child may argue with his parents, however, he should always remain respectful and not let his emotions get the better of him. I think a part of respect comes from empathy. If one empathises with the audience who they are talking to, and keep in mind his perspectives and feelings, I think that a person would be more likely to show respect. I think another aspect of respect is also knowing when one is wrong, and admitting it. Nowadays, people view their image as something extremely important, and feel that by admitting their wrong, they would be showing weakness, and thus stubbornly refuse to do what they know is right, in order to protect their reputation. If instead, a person graciously admits that he was wrong, there would be lesser frustration in the world.