3-Bullet Summary
You’ll benefit more from reading the article the whole way through. But, if you’re pressed for time, here’s a condensed version of A Level Results Day 2023:
- There are two types of student A Level results day: those who met expectations, and those who didn’t quite.
- From this day onwards, there are two paths to go down: the stagnant path and the growth path.
- If you go down the growth path, then you’re setting yourself up for a better future, regardless of the outcome on results day.
Which Boat Are You in?
A Level results day. The day that brings students to their knees in tears of joy or despair.
You’ve opened your results up. Your heart’s racing; adrenaline pumping voraciously around your body.
“What did I get?” you ask yourself internally, as you slowly comprehend the table full of letters before you. Depending on the shapes those letters have taken, you’ve been placed into one of two boats.
Hopefully, you’re in the boat of students who’ve succeeded. You’ve achieved the grades that you require to move onto the next step of your educational or professional career. It might be university, or an apprenticeship.
If this is you then, congratulations! Your hard work and dedication has paid off! Relish this day, because believe me, university is not a walk in the park. You’re going to face a whole new set of challenges that will further develop your character and personality. (You’re also going to see, hear and taste a lot of things that you probably shouldn’t.)
However, this may not be you. You may have opened your results letter and been hit in the face by the letters of disappointment.
Simply put, you’re in the boat of students who didn’t achieve what they needed to.
You feel ashamed and upset. I feel for you. Countless friends of mine have fallen into this boat and I know that it’s devastating. You don’t know where your future’s headed because your plans have been flipped on their head.
But, there’s hope.
The Two Paths
See, results day is simply a brick in the structure of your life.
Regardless of the grades you’ve achieved, these emotions are only temporary. You think that it’s the end of the world and your fate is sealed, but that’s only if you let it be so.
In fact, there are two paths you can go down from this point.
I’m now going to walk you down both. Regardless of whether you’ve succeeded or not quite hit the mark, whichever one of these two paths you go down is on you.
Choose wisely.
The Stagnant Path
From results day on, some students become stagnant. They believe their destiny is set and that whatever they’ve achieved now is the standard they will live up to.
If you’ve had a great results day, then stagnation is essentially you resting on your laurels. It’s you thinking that you can repeat what you’ve already done by utilising the same methods.
If you’ve had an unfortunate results day, then stagnation is frankly dangerous. It’s an “I’m doomed forever” mentality.
Regardless, if you walk down this path, then your future self is going to struggle.
Why?
Because you’re developing a fatalistic fixed mindset.
In her book Mindset, Carol Dweck says that people who develop this attitude end up failing to achieve their potential. They get complacent and fail to move the needle in their lives to any significant degree. This is simply because they believe where they are now is the crescendo of their ability.
This mindset is very dangerous.
Academically, for instance, students with fixed mindsets achieve worse grades in the long run1. Just believing that you can’t achieve beyond the current scope of your ability, or don’t need to adapt breeds long-term underachievement in education. Even more concerningly, students with fixed mindsets struggle at persisting through setbacks they face in their lives2.
You can imagine how negative the second effect is in particular. If you can’t overcome hurdles you face in your life, then you’re going to turn to coping mechanisms.
You’ll join the alcoholics, smokers and drug addicts of the world, and spiral downwards into a dark hole rather than searching for practical solutions to the dilemmas in your life.
You’ll tolerate a career you hate, whilst precious time ticks away.
Perhaps you’ll be one of those people who looks back on their life with regret, you know, about how the path they went down after A Level results day completely ruined the trajectory of their life.
Let that sink in.
Is this the mindset you want to develop? Is the stagnant path really worth going down? No? Then what’s the alternative?
The Growth Path
Whereas some students become stagnant after A Level results day, others develop an internal fire.
They see their grades as a checkpoint. “This is where I am now,” they say to themselves, before developing a plan to build off their current ability.
If you’ve had a great results day, then growth takes many forms. It could be you getting excited for your next opportunity to improve. If you got an A, for instance, then you become hungry to get an A* next time, or a first-class degree. Moreover, if you got the best grades possible (i.e., three A*’s), then a growing student thinks to themself “How could I perform to this same standard again, perhaps even in less time?”
If you’ve had an unfortunate results day, then growth is your only option. (Read that again.) It’s you acknowledging that your failure is totally on your shoulders, and that if you adjust your plan of attack, then the next chapter of your life is going to be more positive.
Going back to Carol Dweck’s Mindset again, she says that people who go down this path and develop a growth mindset end up prospering in all areas of their lives. In education, they get better grades3. They become less likely to develop mental health problems, like anxiety and depression4. Frankly, they just develop more ‘grit’, meaning they can push through obstacles in their way and consistently move forwards in the long run5.
People who go down the growth path simply do better in life.
This relates to you, majorly. Regardless of whether you’ve surpassed, met or fallen below expectations on A Level results day, you should feel comforted by the fact that you can improve with effort.
Putting in hard work over time and persevering through the rough points will keep you away from feeling the pain of underachievement. Not only will you be less likely to experience it, but when you do, you’ll have the tools to deal with it. You’ll unlock your true potential and destroy rather than tolerate barriers preventing you from levelling up with a growth mindset.
Everyday is an opportunity for you to shift the course of you life for the better. as long as you have the right mindset and, accordingly, do the right things consistently, then you can do amazing things.
Destroy pessimism; embrace the growth path.
Final Thoughts: A Level Results Day 2023
A level results day is an emotional wave.
There are highs and lows. Some flourish in ecstasy; others feel down and sombre.
If you’ve done exceptionally well, then I’m so proud of you. Please, celebrate with your loved ones. Dance, sing, eat great food — do whatever you want to do (as long as it’s legal) because you deserve it!
If you’re disappointed and lost, take it on the chin. It’s hard to accept, but you get what you put in. Brush yourself off and move forwards.
Regardless, just remember that it’s only one day.
If you’re a high achiever who wants more of these moments, or someone who didn’t achieve what they wanted and wants results day to be over, I want you to maintain a growth mindset. Doing so will literally determine the direction of your life and keep you on the straight and narrow.
Remind yourself, at all times, that with hard, focused, consistent work, anyone can achieve far more than they ever thought possible.
Also remind yourself that becoming stagnant, tolerating your current circumstances and not adjusting your plan of action will lead you in one of two directions: nowhere or backwards.
I promise that if you keep this in the back of your mind and do what you need to do to succeed for a long time, then you will. Plain and simple.
Today is the result of yesterday’s actions; tomorrow is the result of today’s actions.
Make today a day of growth, so tomorrow is a day of success.
Stay strong,
Sam.
Founder, Strong Students.
(P.S., if you’re off to university and want to get the best grades possible, then download The 10 Secrets of Strong Students ebook. It’s packed full of study secrets that’ll blow you away. Plus, it’s free, so you’ve got nothing to lose.)
