Dear Class of 2025 Graduates,
Congratulations on your impending graduation. As many have told you, it is a milestone. Your family will gather. They will celebrate you. And, you will mark this day as a lifelong memory. I still remember my own high school graduation. It felt monumental at the time. It was.
If I could give you one piece of advice in this moment, it would be to not peak—socially, academically, and personally. There is much to learn about the world and yourself after high school. In fact, you have the opportunity to grow exponentially more in the years to come as long as you don't get too comfortable with where you are and who you are.
Peaking in high school is like winning the first set of a tennis match 6-0 and then getting beat by your opponent 0-6 and 0-6 in the second and third sets. Pardon the tennis analogy. I was a doubles player in high school. I never made it to singles. Clearly, I didn't peak athletically in high school.
I also didn't peak socially and personally in high school. I lacked confidence in myself. I don't know if I'll ever be the most social individual in a room. But I can honestly say I am confident with who I am now. Being popular in high school means absolutely nothing in the grand scheme of things. Being kind means everything, though. That's what the younger students reading this should take to heart.
I wish I could say that I peaked academically in high school, but that is simply not the case either. I was a good student. I got good grades. In the photo above, I am at the honors breakfast days before I graduated. But I did not make connections between disciplines, nor did I know how to write. When I got to college I realized that I wasn't the smartest student in my class, but my study skills were exceptional. I was determined to prove others wrong—that a girl from a less-resourced public high school could achieve in college. I learned how to write. I got exceptional grades. I graduated at the very top of my class. I spoke at my college graduation. Yet, I am still not convinced I have reached my peak academically, intellectually, or professionally.
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That is what keeps me going. In fact, I am always striving to peak. I never want to settle. Neither should you. Always seek out growth, change, evolution in oneself, and better self-awareness.
Make goals for yourself every year. If you don't reach them right away, keep going until you do and then make more goals.
I have some things up my sleeve as I type this. I want to return to tennis, on my terms. I don't need to play singles, per se. But I want to feel strong. I want to write another book. I want to cook more New York Times recipes. I want to walk more steps. I want to put myself out there more this year than I have in the past.
READ MORE: 5 Truths From the Mom of a Recent High School Graduate
If you're wondering, goals are different from peaking.
Write down your goals. Rewrite them over and over again, until you can cross them off your list. Never peak, though. Keep putting down new goals. The journey up the mountain is far better than reaching its peak.
Congratulations to all the high school graduates. Graduating on the quarter century marks a chapter in your life. But what is to come will be epic.
