Sample Essays

Below is a sample of our work. Please note that we don’t just provide critique, but effectively work in
collaboration with the customers on the essays.

Essay 1: What figure do you admire and why? You may choose any field (art, literature, policits, sports etc.)

Lance Armstrong, the American cycling legend, is undoubtedly my Hero. In 1996, when he was diagnosed
with cancer, Doctors opined minimal chances of his survival. But the next 9 years of his life were a
testimony to probably one of the most glorious sagas of human resilience; not only did he recover from
cancer, but went on to win 7 consecutive Tour de France titles, arguably the most arduous test of human
endurance, challenging cyclists to cycle over 2,000 miles of perilous terrain, over 21 days.

People who’ve closely observed Lance over years, chronicle his obsessive training regimen, his focus, his
will to prevail and his impeccable managerial style, that gets manifested in his strategies for staying
ahead of his competitors and his own body.

In 1998 he turned to philanthropy and started the “Lance Armstrong Foundation” for Cancer, through
which, he has raised millions of dollars to assist in cancer research and to help people recover from
cancer. The motto of this foundation is: “We believe that in the battle with cancer, unity is strength,
knowledge is power and attitude is everything”. Truly, he has transcended from just being a sports
champion; he is a champion of life; an inspiration for millions of cancer patients, for whom his
indomitable story gives hope and reason…to not let it go.

Perhaps Dan Gable’s words would aptly surmise my sentiment for this living legend: “Gold medals aren't
really made of gold. They're made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts”.

Essay 2: Describe an incident that has influenced you most and changed your outlook.

This incident dates 4 years, when a close neighbor of mine, lost his job. This ensued in a severe bout of
depression, culminating in his committing suicide at the tender age of 30, leaving his hapless widow
mother all alone. This incident shook the lights out of me. Here I was, a strict disciplinarian and firmly in
control of my life (or so it seemed), following a grueling 12-14 hour work regimen, with my family, friends,
hobbies and anything but work, falling into oblivion. Relentless work seemed to be the only rationale and
spending time with family seemed a luxury I could ill-afford. “Me, myself and my-name” seemed to be the
motto of life.

But suddenly, it didn’t seem like that anymore. It was almost as if all the purported control over my life
was an illusion and rationality, an afterthought. I contemplated and decided to give chance to things that I
had almost forgotten, existed. This included spending time with my family, sparing time for hobbies,
arranging for Financial security for my dependents, getting more health conscious and engaging in social
work.

Like any other transition, this one was not easy, for years of work regimen seemed to have de-sensitized
me from deriving pleasure out of simple things in life. It required effort from me to take my family to
vacation, to re-kindle interest in my hobbies, to indulge in sports and to even play with my kids!!

Over time however, I realized that my changed regimen benefited me at my work place as well. Since I
now did not have an infinite amount of time at hand, I became more efficient at work. My rapport with
colleagues and subordinates improved as well. I know it since they mentioned it in passing that I seemed
more affable now.

I would also like to mention my indulgence in few social initiatives, that was a direct fallout of my
changed outlook. I have been funding our house-maid’s 8 year old son’s education for the last 4 years. In
my organization, I took the initiative of arranging blood donation camps and am also associated with
various NGOs like CRY etc.

Overall I can doubtless claim myself to be a happier person now. In retrospect, it almost seems
surrealistic to think about the kind of life I was living and it does pain me to think that it took a young
man’s life to make me realize that there was so much more to life, than I had ever cared for.