At some point, we all start chasing that 'perfect' resume. This is especially important for teenagers putting together a portfolio for admission. Sometimes it feels like everything you do must be beneficial for you.
For your application. For your future. For your resume. And if it isn't, it's like you wasted your time.
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I understand how familiar it is when you run after every activity, internship, and summer program. We try to fit our entire lives onto a single page. Every activity—line, every success—bullet point. You start to look at your life as a list: what else could be added, what seems serious, and what's best left unmentioned.
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Gradually, a feeling comes up that every minute must be productive. We chase powerful extracurriculars: the Olympics, medals, competitions, and sporting successes. It seems that only this makes us 'successful.' But in this race, it's easy to forget that we already have the greatest treasures: family, friends, moments that make us alive here and now.
Sometimes the most valuable thing isn't what ends up on your resume, but what stays with you when you close your laptop and live your true life.
Even I, who gives you advice, forget that I myself am in this race for success to find that 'perfect' portfolio. I realise that in creating this portfolio, I forgot my most important achievement: having such parents and a family who will support me at any moment.
Adding another hobby to my resume, thinking that it is not worthy of being there, I forget one thing: I am already a beloved daughter, a supportive sister, and a good friend. In my teenage years, I realized that a portfolio is far from the only important thing in life.
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What Resumes Don't Show
A resume doesn't describe what we truly value. It won't show those deep conversations with friends late at night, where you share your problems, laugh, and solve nothing, but it does make you feel better.
It won't write how great it is to simply go to a club or a match, not to win, but because you like it there, because you are there with those who are important to you. Not every moment in life is a victory, and that's okay. Your team doesn't always win a match; your project doesn't always get a 'like' or a first place. And that doesn't mean you've failed as a person.
We often chase after 'perfect' resumes, medals, victories, and diplomas, forgetting about what truly matters: the people around us, the simple joys, and the moments that make us alive. Sometimes the most valuable thing isn't something you can measure or show others. It's right here, with family, with friends, in the funny and happy moments that stay with you forever. They are the ones that make life complete, and no resume can replace them.
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Life Is More Than Achievements
Finally, true value isn't found in medals, diplomas, or resumes. It's right in front of us, in the little moments when you can be yourself without rules or expectations. These are the moments that make us happy, that teach us to love life and each other, even when things don't go according to plan.
Life isn't a list of achievements, and it's not measured by likes or points. And we need to learn to appreciate them, we'll understand that being alive and loved is far more important than being successful in the eyes of others.
