The Toxicity of Academic Validation

Since when did it become a thing to correlate academics and one's self-worth? Many college students, myself included, are constantly craving academic validation. I am an academic validation girly, and I have been since the dawn of time (aka high school). I was always an "over-achiever" (still am) because there is something so empowering about doing well in school. Feeling validated by academics allows me to stay on track and work as hard as I can to do my very best. 

While academic validation can be a good motivator, it also has the potential be quite destructive, making you question if what you're doing is ever enough. For example, if I miss two questions on an exam that I studied really hard for, I am disappointed in myself for missing any at all, despite getting a "good" score. This way of thinking is extremely draining, especially at the collegiate level. We are given so many projects, exams, and assignments, and of course, we want to excel in all areas, but sometimes that's just now how things work.

That being said, it is important to go easy on yourself when you can, trying not to relate self-worth with academics, because let's be honest, who really cares? Academics have nothing to do with the kind of person that you are, so, doing poorly on something does not constitute self-hatred! While this was mostly me just trying to make myself feel better, I hope that someone reads this and is reminded that it's perfectly OK to not do well all. the. time.