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          Our life is not perfect, and there are situations that we can control and those we cannot. We can do nothing to accept the situation or take charge and control the outcome. Creator and Victim are situations of how life choices are presented to us. Skip Downing in his book On Couse: Strategies for Creating Success in College and in Life, defines the choices made by both Victim and Creator. Victims are people who blame the situation, and think they won’t be able to control the result. They always find a reason to give up. On the other hand, Creators are people who can change the current situation, by finding a solution to the problem (Downing 42). Professor David Mirman, in his blog, You Are the Prime Mover, gives an example of Victim and Creator response. He encourages the reader to become a Creator rather than a Victim (Mirman). The Victim and Creator mindset gives us a two choices. We can choose the path of the Victim or Creator. I choose to be a Creator mindset to reach my goal.

 

         In Professor David Mirman’s article, "Do You Think like a Victim or a Creator?", he wrote the true story about Jonathan Brenan. The first day of college class, there were two students that had no textbook because the bookstore did not have sufficient amount of books. They were told to order their books prior to the second week of class.  The first college student did not take any action regarding ordering the books needed, and just blamed the situation of how it was not available at the college bookstore. The second student took more of a pro-active approach by using resources available to her; such as acquiring the needed books at a local bookstore, and ordering her used books via online. It was expedited to her for the similar price of the new book at the college bookstore. The first student depicts as a Victim response, as stated by Skip Downing. She blamed the bookstore for running out of books, and just accepted the situation by not taking any action and thus not reaching her objective of getting her books. The second student depicts as a Creator response. She wanted to accomplish her goal of obtaining the books and succeed. In order to become a Creator have a positive solution rather than a negative one (Mirman).

 

          Seven years ago, I also became a victim.  I got pregnant and stop going to college.  And I was very terrified in attending college again.  There were several factors that I was contemplating, my age, who will look after my daughters, and will I able to make time for my kids and do my college work.  After much thinking, I looked at college brochures and read about courses to take. I did not enroll because I would have to re-take placement tests for Mathematics and English. I would rather take care of my three kids because it is easier than going back to college. David Mirman states that “A Victim response seeks to find blame for a negative situation. A Victim response is generally unhelpful to reaching one’s goal” (Mirman 22). From my experienced, I chose to be a Victim response.

 

          Creator Mindset reminds me of my father that I look up to. My father came from a poor family in the Philippines. An ordinary family eating three meals a day. They only ate twice per day. Rice with soy sauce was their main meal. Sometimes if they are lucky, they would eat vegetable and fish. Most of the time, he walked to school for two miles barefoot. The money that was given to him for his allowance; he saved it instead for school projects. Never blaming his circumstances in life, he worked hard, and graduated with honors from high school. He went to college with two pairs of pants for the entire time. He managed to work and study to suffice the needs of his family, plus his college expenditures. He earned a Political Science Degree, and became a Police Officer. At the age 41, he became a Lieutenant Colonel in the Philippine National Police. He was the youngest and successful officer in his time. He was well respected from all his peers. He contributed to solve the traffic regulations in the Philippines. At the age of 55, he died with full military honors and dignity. My father applied the Creator Mindset. He controlled his path to succeed. Professor Mirman States, “The Creator asks, “What can I do to achieve my goal?” or “What can I do to make this situation better?” rather than seeking to lay blame for how the situation came to be” (Mirman).

 

           I will become a Creator mindset. With good mind and heart, the purpose in life can be achieved. As a college student, I will make an effort to become a reliable student by doing all the tasks that need to be done and obtain the grades to apply for the Dental Hygiene program. I will not let my situation affect me. I will take all the necessary steps to reach my goal, become a Dental Hygienist.

 

 

                                                                                                     Works Cited

 

Downing, Skip. On Course: Strategies for Creating Success in College and in Life. 7th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2014. 42-44. Print.

 

Mirman, David. "Do You Think like a Victim or a Creator?" You are The Prime Mover. 2 Jan. 2012. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.       <http://youaretheprimemover.com/2012/do-you-think-like-a-victim-or-a-creator>.

 

 

Creator versus Victim Mindset

 

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