Once upon a time, a young girl succeeded in every aspect of academics. She was placed in GATE classes from the beginning and received numerous awards. It's true that she excelled in math, but she never really enjoyed the subject. As she progressed through high school, she realized math wasn't her strong suit, but continued to blame her struggles on the teacher. Finally, she reached Pre-Calculus Honors in 11th grade. She knew she was struggling, but didn't know how to fix it. Throughout the first semester, she earned grades of "C" or lower on every test, but always retained false hope that she would earn at least a "B" in the class. Then came that fateful day at the end of the semester...report cards. She had prayed and prayed, and this was it: the moment of truth. Ripping open the envelope, she saw right there on the paper: Pre-Calculus Honors...C. Her first-ever "C." Heartbroken, she began to cry to her mother. At 16-years-old, this confused teenager was me. I was devastated, feeling I had failed my family and would never amount to anything because of that one "C." For days, weeks, months, even, I was miserable.

But one day in April, I happened upon a book in the school library, a book that would change my life: The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz, Ph.D. With bold red and blue fonts on the cover, it looked like another one of those self-help scams. I was even a bit embarrassed to carry it around school, due to its sheer obnoxious font and color choice. Little did I know that there really was a magic to thinking big. After homework that night, I decided to begin this "Bible of Success."

Line after line, I found myself reciting quotes from the book to my mother. With every piece of advice, Schwartz would include a true story that defended it. After only the first day, I was convinced this truly was a Bible of some sort, a book that proved its divinity. All of a sudden I had a second wind, a new rush of confidence and belief...I could succeed! I began applying Schwartz's techniques to math class, such as "Believe You Can Succeed & You Will" and "Dress for Success." By the next test, I saw dramatic improvement. For the rest of the semester, I received test grades no lower than an 88%! In just two months, I was able to proudly present the report card to my parents, which in fact displayed: Pre-Calculus Honors...B.?

Following my bout of success I went on to recommend The Magic of Thinking Big to one of my friends. We have each purchased our own copies of this glorious book, just to have on-hand, in case we need a little motivation once in a while. I was able to easily apply Dr. Schwartz's techniques to all aspects of my life. The Magic of Thinking Big really has changed my life and I recommend it to anyone who needs an extra nudge, an extra rush of confidence in order to feel better about themselves. In the words of Dr. David J. Schwartz himself, "Success is determined not so much by the size of one's brain as it is by the size of one's thinking."