As I began to write this column, I hesitated for a minute or 20. Questions flowed through my mind: What if I offend someone? What if my English professors are disappointed in my grammar? What if, at parties, my friends bring up something embarrassing that I wrote? What if I write a truly liberal piece, and a conservative writes back taking a crack at my mama?

Even though only two out of those four things have actually happened, I am still deferred by my timidity. I think similar delays come at us in all aspects of life. When we have a paper due for a class, we are always looking for too much direction, and when we don’t get that direction, we feel anxious. I have heard a student mutter, “I have no idea how to write this paper,” but seen that same person go on to write a quality paper.

We pull out our hair when we doubt ourselves. Instead of dreading our professor’s red pens, we need to trust ourselves. What is the worst that can happen? We should be going into classes with the attitude that we can accomplish every one of the assignments before class even starts. Although this may prove impossible, I think we would be surprised how much we already know.

I think we are too often frightened by authority figures. Even though we need to respect authority, we must not fear authority. When I used to play basketball I would constantly glance over at my coach. Every time I missed a basket or threw a hideous pass out of bounds, I would check to see how red my coach’s cheeks turned. It was self-deprecating. It tore me apart to constantly think about how others were viewing me.

I am inspired by the movie, School of Rock, because a popular theme throughout the film is “sticking it to the man.” In other words, we should not let the world’s injustices bring us down, and we need to trust that what we are doing is right. In School of Rock, the main character, Dewy Finn, played by Jack Black, pretends to be a substitute teacher, so his students can join his band. Before their first performance, Dewey tries to rid his students of their stage fright by saying, “We may fall on our faces, but if we do, we will fall with dignity! With a guitar in our hands, and rock in our hearts! And in the words of AC/DC: ‘We roll tonight to the guitar bite, and for those about to rock, I salute you.’”

Whatever happens after you turn in your 20-page thesis is going to happen no matter how stressed you get before writing it. If we use everything we have learned and give everything we have got, then falling will not steal our dignity. We must not forget what we have accomplished to get where we are. Each challenge brings new obstacles, but it is uplifting to look back on past challenges, and realize they were not worth the panic attacks.

Sometimes it is not necessarily falling down that we fear, but actually succeeding. How will people judge us if we spend a weekend in the library or work all day trying to perfect a jumpshot? Will my classmates think I am snooty for answering all the prof’s questions in class? Will I be humiliated if I pour out my feelings into my poetry?
When we stop worrying about what other people think of us, we actually thrive, and in doing so, allow others to thrive around us. In A Return to Love, Marianne Williamson writes, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that frightens us most.” This statement emphasizes the importance of having faith in ourselves, and trusting that the view from the top will be even more beautiful than the one at the bottom.

Williamson goes on to say, “ It’s not just in some of us; it’s in all of us. And when we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” We have to realize that wherever we go in life, we are not going to be leaving anyone in the dust, at least not anyone we care about. By sprinting ahead, we encourage the stragglers to catch up, and when we trust ourselves, we keep our dignity if we fail.

By all means, we are not invincible, and we should probably think hard about what we are going to write about before we write a thesis. But if you sit down to write your paper and you fall on your face (literally or figuratively), you fall with dignity, with a pen in hand, and a passing grade in your heart. So I say, for those about to start your dreaded thesis, or attend another grueling sports practice, I salute you.