Editorial: Trust in yourself and you’ll conquer those Leaving Cert exam nerves

The truth is, unsolicited, well-meant guidance is worth far less than your own instinct and preparation. Being told this or that exam “is not the end of the world” – especially from those who do not have to sit it – may come from a good place: but it is of precious little use to a student whose heart is set on a certain course. It is far easier to be knowing about the tasks of others than to pay attention to our own.

If you are nervous, that’s normal.

We are all in the dark until we try. That little spark of belief in yourself, and who you are, is far more likely to light the fire of your imagination than any amount of suggestion, no matter how good-natured.

It is also empowering to recognise that all those uninvited gremlins of self-doubt can be silenced, once you trust that you have done the work and this moment is yours, and yours alone, to make the most of.

Had you been given a choice, would you not rather trust yourself towards achievement than doubt yourself into oblivion? Tomorrow that choice is yours.

You’re going after something that you want, so don’t hold back. As they say, sometimes in life you have an appointment with destiny, and sometimes it’s a matter of making destiny squeeze you in.

But setbacks can create a habit of overestimating the difficulties and underestimating ourselves.

Everyone makes mistakes, they are part of the process of getting to where you need to be. They should be seen as guide posts, not stop signs. Success comes from action, so however daunting a question seems, you don’t freeze, but actively consider what is desired of you and give it a go.

There isn’t necessarily an easy way, even though it might appear success comes more readily to others.

Once you make an honest effort, something positive will happen.

As George Bernard Shaw said: “When I was young, I observed that nine out of 10 things I did were failures. So I did 10 times more work.” The time to make good on your work has come after all the waiting.

Piling on extra pressure over the grades you might achieve is handicapping yourself.

There’s a temptation to waste valuable time and energy worrying about what you don’t know compared with all that you do. There is always something to upset even the most careful of calculations.

When a thing is hard, you must take it as a reminder to remember your strengths, not your weaknesses.

You calmly do the best you can, and instead of opening a door to false urgency, create an emergency exit to let it out.

Most of the odds against you are made by yourself, so it is also within your gift to ignore them.

The best of luck to you all. The time to make the future yours begins now, and belief is a great ignition switch.