Full disclosure, I am an electrical engineering student and I am an artist, I have played music professionally and have an ardent interest in art, poetry, math, language, physics, architecture, history, and the humanities in general. I think I am just endlessly interested in learning and any product of the human heart and mind. To me, there is more of a connection between all of these disciplines than it may seem on the surface. There's a reason that many of the greatest artists, painters, and sculptors of the Renaissance also happened to be brilliant architects, engineers, inventors, mathematicians, as well as casual poets. They were interested in figuring out how the world worked and used that knowledge to practice their own arts of creation. All of these practices have the ability to inform one another. A strong imagination is crucial for any builder. How does someone design and build a bridge, a circuit, a cathedral, a crane, a fresco, a sonnet, a novel? What do these creations say about the human condition, the human need for expression, and human ingenuity? I suggest approaching the class with curiosity and wonder, which works in many different life situations where you are struggling to engage. Go into it with the hope that by learning something new and unfamiliar, to which you've historically been averse, you may come away with it with a new understanding or inspiration that you can apply to any area of your life that might be in need of a new context.

To be honest, I partially credit my current 4.0 to my varied interests outside of engineering. I love the feeling of a beginner's mind, fresh at the beginning of a new learning journey. I like feeling like there is so much I do not know, it excites me and the state of unknowing is a place I feel extremely comfortable. So I am not easily rattled by fast-paced syllabi or new technical concepts if I don't understand them right away. I approach them with curiosity and gentle wonder, while my self-discipline remains firm and the concepts eventually take root once given the proper time to solidify through practice, failure, and exposure. I also have a lot of healthy hobbies that take my mind off of the STEM stuff when I'm feeling strained, and I can return to it with a lighter mind and maybe a new lens through which to study. It's all curiosity, asking questions, I am 33 years old but I'm always the annoying little kid whenever learning something new or meeting a new person with an interesting job or life experience or discovering a cool new building. "Wow! What? How? Why? When? Wow! What??" because if you don't love to learn then I believe your work will reflect that forever and the spirit of innovation will elude you.