你并不会因为努力而得到A You Don’t Always Get an A Just Because You Tried
The story we like to tell ourselves is simple: work hard, and good things will happen. Study late into the night, pour your heart into every assignment, and surely, the top grade will follow. But real life isn’t as tidy as that story. Sometimes, despite genuine effort, the result isn’t an A—maybe it’s a B, maybe even less. Disappointment can settle in like a gray morning fog.
我们经常告诉自己一个简单的道理：只要够努力，好事就会发生。熬夜复习、认真对待每一次作业，总觉得A会自然而然地到来。但现实远没有故事里那样顺理成章。很多时候，哪怕真的付出了心血，得来的未必是A，可能是B，甚至更低。那种落空的感觉，就像清晨的薄雾，悄然弥漫心头。
Psychologists at Stanford University have studied this tension between effort and outcome. Their research shows that, while sustained effort is vital for growth, results remain unpredictable. An A grade depends on many shifting elements: prior preparation, sleep, how the questions are worded, maybe even pure luck. Effort is necessary, but never a guarantee.
斯坦福大学的心理学家们曾研究过努力与结果之间的张力。他们发现，持续的努力固然重要，但结果往往无法预料。能不能拿到A，和很多因素有关：之前的积累、睡眠状态、试题的难易，甚至有时就靠运气。努力是前提，却不是保证。
This gap between what you give and what you get can hurt. It’s easy to slip into self-blame: “I must not be smart enough” or “If I had just worked harder...” But sometimes, the most honest truth is simply: “I did my best, and it wasn’t enough for an A—and that’s okay.”
付出与收获不总是成正比，这种落差让人难免难过。我们容易自责：“是不是我不够聪明？”“要是当初再努力一点就好了……”但其实，有时最诚实的想法也许是：“我已经尽力了，没拿到A，也没关系。”
Rather than judging yourself by the final letter, notice the invisible growth: the way you asked better questions, how you began to understand what once seemed impossible, your willingness to keep showing up. As educator Carol Dweck points out, the real success is developing a mind that can adapt, persist, and learn, rather than just collecting top grades.
比起单看最终的成绩，更应该看到成长中那些不易被发现的变化：你学会了更好地发问，曾经觉得不可能的内容开始慢慢理解，即使遇到挫折你也没有放弃。正如教育家卡罗尔·德韦克所说，真正的成功，是拥有一颗能适应、敢坚持、愿意学习的心，而不只是收集那些顶尖分数。
Consider these gentler measures of growth:
- Did you approach challenges with curiosity?
- Did you keep going, even when it got frustrating?
- Did you ask for help when you needed it?
你可以这样衡量自己的成长：
- 你是否带着好奇面对问题？
- 遇到挫折时有没有坚持下去？
- 需要帮助时，是否愿意主动寻求？
Your worth isn’t measured by straight As. Life asks for perseverance, not perfection. Giving your effort is worthwhile—because who you become while striving matters more than any grade. As novelist Matt Haig writes, “The world is increasingly designed to depress us. But happiness isn’t measured in A grades—it's in your courage to keep going.”
我们的价值，并不取决于成绩单上的A。人生要求的，是坚持不懈，而不是完美无缺。全力以赴本身就值得骄傲，因为在追求目标的过程中，你变成了更好的自己。正如作家马特·海格所说：“这个世界总在让我们沮丧，但快乐和幸福，绝不是A带来的，而是我们努力走下去的那份勇气。”
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