My Background

I graduated from high school in China in 2018, and in the same year, I immigrated to the United States. You might think I had a strong foundation in English—but that wasn’t true. Back then, I could only say simple phrases like, “Hello,” “How are you?” and “I’m fine, thank you.” At that time, I wanted to attend high school in the U.S., but I was rejected because I had already graduated in China. My only option was college—but instead, I chose to work for several years. I worked as a liquor store salesman, a waiter, and even a yogurt maker. During this time, I slowly built my vocabulary and learned basic sentence structures. However, it still wasn’t enough to meet KBCC’s admission requirements. In the summer of 2023, I joined the CLIP program. My instructor, Mr. Teter, was a very positive person who made the learning journey enjoyable. And now, as you can see, I can speak English fluently. I am proof that you can do it too.

My Learning Method

I believe that learning without output is like eating without digestion. You may consume information, but you never truly understand it. So how do we fix this? The answer is the Feynman Learning Method. It’s simple: Pick a concept Explain it in your own words If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t truly understand it Then go back, review, and try again—until you can explain it clearly. Why It Works It forces real understanding—not memorization It reveals your weak points It improves both communication and thinking Our brain often tricks us into thinking we understand something—until we try to explain it.

My Habit: Writing

Because of this, I developed a habit of writing. Writing is a superpower. It helps you organize your thoughts, improve your logic, and strengthen your critical thinking over time.

Mindset

As Elon Musk once said: “I would rather be optimistic and wrong than pessimistic and right.” A positive mindset is always more powerful than a negative one. Our brain has two parts: The conscious mind The subconscious mind Think of the conscious mind as the leader, and the subconscious mind as the worker. About 90% of our behavior is controlled by the subconscious mind. The interesting part is: Your subconscious mind does not know what is right or wrong—it only responds to repetition. If you constantly repeat negative thoughts like “I can’t do this,” your subconscious will stop looking for solutions. But if you repeat positive beliefs like “I can figure this out,” your subconscious will start working for you—even when you’re not aware of it.

Closing

So believe in yourself. Stay consistent. Keep learning, and more importantly—keep expressing what you learn. Because if I can do it, you can do it too.

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presentable transcript

🎤 Presentation Transcript (Optimized Version)

1. My Background

I graduated from high school in China in 2018, and that same year, I immigrated to the United States. You might think I had a strong foundation in English—but that wasn’t true. At that time, I could only say simple phrases like “Hello,” “How are you?” and “I’m fine, thank you.” I wanted to attend high school in the U.S., but I was rejected because I had already graduated in China. So my only option was college—but instead, I chose to work. I worked as a liquor store salesman, a waiter, and even a yogurt maker. During those years, I slowly built my vocabulary and learned basic sentence structures. But it still wasn’t enough to meet KBCC’s admission requirements. Everything changed in the summer of 2023, when I joined the CLIP program. My instructor, Mr. Teter, was incredibly positive and made learning enjoyable. And now, as you can see—I can speak English fluently. I am living proof that progress is possible. And if I can do it—you can do it too.

2. My Learning Method

I believe: Learning without output is like eating without digestion. You can consume information all day—but if you never express it, you don’t truly understand it. So how do we fix this? By using the Feynman Learning Method:

• Pick a concept
• Explain it in your own words
• If you can’t explain it simply—you don’t understand it yet
• Go back, review, and try again Why does this work? Because it:
• Forces real understanding—not memorization
• Exposes your weak points
• Improves both communication and thinking

Our brain often tricks us into thinking we understand something— until we try to explain it.

3. My Habit: Writing

Because of this method, I developed a habit: writing. Writing is a superpower. It helps you: Organize your thoughts Improve your logic Strengthen your critical thinking Over time, writing turns confusion into clarity.

4. Mindset

There’s a quote by Elon Musk:

“I would rather be optimistic and wrong than pessimistic and right.”

A positive mindset is powerful. Think of your brain like this: The conscious mind is the leader The subconscious mind is the worker And here’s the key: About 90% of your behavior is controlled by your subconscious mind. But your subconscious doesn’t know what’s true or false. It only responds to repetition. If you keep telling yourself: “I can’t do this” → your brain stops trying. But if you tell yourself: “I can figure this out” → your brain starts working for you. Even when you don’t realize it.

5. Let Go of Perfectionism

Perfection sounds good—but in reality, it kills your action holds you back. I used to believe: My first presentation had to be amazing It had to be unique It had to impress everyone But that’s impossible when you’re just starting. You don’t start perfect. You become better as you working on it. This presentation you see right now? It has been revised more than 10 times. Without the first draft—none of this would exist. So here’s the lesson:

• 👉 Lower the bar
• 👉 Lower the expectation
• 👉 Focus on making something publishable, not perfect Because progress comes from doing, not waiting.

6. Closing

So believe in yourself. Stay consistent. Keep learning. And more importantly—keep expressing what you learn. Because if I can do it… You can do it too.