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Aaron Burns

8/28/19

Instructor: Taylor Martin

EN 101-036/056

Dear Taylor Martin,

Hi, I’m Aaron Burns! I’ve been pretty excited about starting college for a good while.

Now that I’m here I’m totally ready for the new change of pace! Upon learning of the habits of

minds I feel as though I connect with openness, persistence, and creativity the most.

I’m what you would call an Air Force Brat. So during my childhood, I was always

moving from state to state and country to country. So I had to adapt to all these new

surroundings that I was constantly being introduced to. Which in turn, lead to me lead to me

becoming a more open individual. From a very young age, I’ve always known my parents to be

what you could describe as go-getters. They were always creating their own small

businesses―my personal favorite being this lawn care service they started up

together―essentially paving their paths to success. Seeing this type of attitude constantly

portrayed by my parents has sort of instilled in me a sense of personal responsibility; to the point

where I can recognize the things I truly want for myself and consistently go for them. Until I

inevitably actualize them. I’m also an avid fan of the wildly popular children's toy LEGOs. You

could always catch me building various different creations throughout my childhood. Thi,s in a

way, has curated a creative nature about myself. Since I would have to repeatedly use my

imagination and think about how exactly I would draft out and put together whatever my newest

creation would’ve been.

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During this upcoming semester, there are a couple of things I want to set forth and

accomplish for myself. Touching back to the habits of minds I tend to lack in some areas, First

being metacognition. I don’t often reflect on myself in as much of a tactful lens as I should.

However, it would definitely pose a huge benefit to me if I were to do so. Self-reflection should

be a key factor for my success as a student. I’ll be able to recognize when and where I mess up

and then I'll be able to actualize real solutions for my problems. Second, being Engaging.

Procrastination is a struggle of mine that I want to start getting better at. I hope to find a good

balance between my working and downtime. Lastly, I wish to focus more on is flexibility. I need

to be able to adapt as well as allocate my time more wisely this semester so I can ensure my

academic success this year.

Now I chose to focus on these three habits more this semester based on my high school

experience. I juggled my extracurriculars, debate and class officers moderately well. I semi

efficiently got my work done before their due dates. I also barely had the time to reflect on

myself and the things learned in class. This semester I hope to change all of that for the better.

Ultimately I just want to find that perfect medium!

In this class, I’m really looking forward to improving my writing skills. I’ve recently

become a lot more fond of it in the past year. I’ve even started keeping my own personal journal.

Even though I do enjoy writing, I do have a couple of struggles with it. Such as getting started,

flow, and sometimes depth with my subject matter.

All in all, this is a little bit about myself. I am really excited about this course.

Throughout this semester I am looking forward to improving on the habits of mind I lack in on

top of bettering my faults in writing!

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Sincerely,

Aaron Burns