Setbacks and Challenges are Stepping Stones for My Life

I have had many unforgettable experiences in my life. One of them is studying for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) exam, which is deeply engraved in my mind. This exam was very difficult for me, because it was my first exposure to academic English. The numerous new vocabulary bewildered me. The reading section was just like ancient bibles, and I had no idea what these articles were saying. However, I only had six months to prepare for this seemingly impossible exam. In the process, I experienced a lot of frustrations and failures. The failures have taught me to work hard, persevere, and never give in when faced with difficulties.

When I started to prepare for this exam, I did not have a proper understanding of the test at all. I just blindly recited numerous new words. I did not have enough practice in the listening and reading sections. I spent three hours learning new words, and repeated the same steps every day. I thought TOEFL would eventually become easy for me if I could command a large number of new words. The unfamiliar academic words from the reading section were like walls that prevented me from understanding the text. All I got was fragmented pieces of information. A lot of new words frequently appeared in the listening section, too. Day after day, when I memorized almost all of the several thousand words for the TOEFL exam, I felt confident about it for the first time. I thought my grades would not be too bad with the support of vocabulary. I was like an arrogant child, always overconfident in something that I had known.

However, the first test result broke my heart. I got a very low grade: fifty-seven points. I spent so much time, but the grade was not proportional to the efforts at all. Looking at the terrible grade, I felt very frustrated. I thought my effort was futile. The experience made me realize that the TOEFL exam is not only about examining the vocabulary. More importantly, practical abilities in English are the key point of the test. Although the first round was pretty bad, which defeated me a bit, I began to feel more confident in getting a good grade next time. I still have a lot of time to prepare for the exam. The first exam gave me a valuable experience and an improved understanding of this exam.

Through the first experience of taking this exam, I realized that the reading and listening sections were where I could potentially get high scores. I regained my confidence and continued to put my whole heart and soul into preparing for the second exam for ten weeks. Although it was very boring to the take exams again and again, I didn’t give up quickly. I started to try to listen and read academic articles independently, instead of blindly reciting vocabularies. I practiced for the exam over and over again. After all these efforts, I expected the second grade to be much better than the first. However, the result was no good. The grade was just slightly higher than the first time. I felt very frustrated again. I thought no matter what I did, I could not pass.

I had already spent over four months preparing for the TOEFL exam, but the results were just disappointing. My heart only wanted to give up on this annoying exam as soon as I could. I didn’t want to let another poor result break my heart once more. I always talk to my mom when I run into trouble, and she is the best listener in the world. When I complained to her about the frustrations of taking the exams, I had tears in my eyes and told her that I wanted to just quit. However, my mom encouraged me to take the exam again. She comforted me: “No matter what the result is, you should take the exam again. This exam not only can improve your English ability, but also make you a stronger person.” Although I was reluctant, I did not want to let my mother down. I swallowed my disappointment, and determined to take it again.

In order to get a good grade in the third exam, I spent much more effort in the practices and mock tests compared to the previous rounds. I also attended extra classes and got help from the TOEFL training center in the preparation. During this period, although the process was extremely tedious and boring, I gritted my teeth with a fearless spirit to work hard on the road to the third exam. Finally, my effort was not in vain. I got a satisfactory grade, and this was already half a year from the moment I started this TOEFL adventure. I was feeling so relieved and happy like never before. My parents were also happy that my efforts paid off.

This is a very unforgettable experience in my life. Recalling the many failures and setbacks that I had throughout my live, I often had thought of giving up. However, the final success after taking TOEFL three times made me understand that when we face setbacks and challenges, we should accept the challenge bravely. Perhaps, sometimes I feel very hopeless about the result due to the temporary defeat, but I may just be one step away from victory. This experience of failures is not a stumbling stock for my life. Instead, it is a stepping stone, which gives me an entirely new perspective about how to handle setbacks and difficulties.Setbacks and Challenges are Stepping Stones for My Life.

I have had many unforgettable experiences in my life. One of them is studying for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) exam, which is deeply engraved in my mind. This exam was very difficult for me, because it was my first exposure to academic English. The numerous new vocabulary bewildered me. The reading section was just like ancient bibles, and I had no idea what these articles were saying. However, I only had six months to prepare for this seemingly impossible exam. In the process, I experienced a lot of frustrations and failures. The failures have taught me to work hard, persevere, and never give in when faced with difficulties.
When I started to prepare for this exam, I did not have a proper understanding of the test at all. I just blindly recited numerous new words. I did not have enough practice in the listening and reading sections. I spent three hours learning new words, and repeated the same steps every day. I thought TOEFL would eventually become easy for me if I could command a large number of new words. The unfamiliar academic words from the reading section were like walls that prevented me from understanding the text. All I got was fragmented pieces of information. A lot of new words frequently appeared in the listening section, too. Day after day, when I memorized almost all of the several thousand words for the TOEFL exam, I felt confident about it for the first time. I thought my grades would not be too bad with the support of vocabulary. I was like an arrogant child, always overconfident in something that I had known.

However, the first test result broke my heart. I got a very low grade: fifty-seven points. I spent so much time, but the grade was not proportional to the efforts at all. Looking at the terrible grade, I felt very frustrated. I thought my effort was futile. The experience made me realize that the TOEFL exam is not only about examining the vocabulary. More importantly, practical abilities in English are the key point of the test. Although the first round was pretty bad, which defeated me a bit, I began to feel more confident in getting a good grade next time. I still have a lot of time to prepare for the exam. The first exam gave me a valuable experience and an improved understanding of this exam.

Through the first experience of taking this exam, I realized that the reading and listening sections were where I could potentially get high scores. I regained my confidence and continued to put my whole heart and soul into preparing for the second exam for ten weeks. Although it was very boring to the take exams again and again, I didn’t give up quickly. I started to try to listen and read academic articles independently, instead of blindly reciting vocabularies. I practiced for the exam over and over again. After all these efforts, I expected the second grade to be much better than the first. However, the result was no good. The grade was just slightly higher than the first time. I felt very frustrated again. I thought no matter what I did, I could not pass.

I had already spent over four months preparing for the TOEFL exam, but the results were just disappointing. My heart only wanted to give up on this annoying exam as soon as I could. I didn’t want to let another poor result break my heart once more. I always talk to my mom when I run into trouble, and she is the best listener in the world. When I complained to her about the frustrations of taking the exams, I had tears in my eyes and told her that I wanted to just quit. However, my mom encouraged me to take the exam again. She comforted me: “No matter what the result is, you should take the exam again. This exam not only can improve your English ability, but also make you a stronger person.” Although I was reluctant, I did not want to let my mother down. I swallowed my disappointment, and determined to take it again.

In order to get a good grade in the third exam, I spent much more effort in the practices and mock tests compared to the previous rounds. I also attended extra classes and got help from the TOEFL training center in the preparation. During this period, although the process was extremely tedious and boring, I gritted my teeth with a fearless spirit to work hard on the road to the third exam. Finally, my effort was not in vain. I got a satisfactory grade, and this was already half a year from the moment I started this TOEFL adventure. I was feeling so relieved and happy like never before. My parents were also happy that my efforts paid off.

This is a very unforgettable experience in my life. Recalling the many failures and setbacks that I had throughout my live, I often had thought of giving up. However, the final success after taking TOEFL three times made me understand that when we face setbacks and challenges, we should accept the challenge bravely. Perhaps, sometimes I feel very hopeless about the result due to the temporary defeat, but I may just be one step away from victory. This experience of failures is not a stumbling stock for my life. Instead, it is a stepping stone, which gives me an entirely new perspective about how to handle setbacks and difficulties.