The Zinch Report

The dreadful college application essays....aaaaagggghhhh! For you rising seniors out there, it's about time to start thinking about it and drafting some ideas if you haven't already started. The more time you give yourself, the more people will be able to read it, the more feedback you'll get, and the more time you'll have to perfect it. Start early. I know...you aren't used to it. If you're like most other high school students, you've procrastinated your entire high school existence. It happens. I did it. He did it. She did it. And I bet you did it. It's a sad fact.

Anyway, it's time to wake up. The college application, and especially its essays, are not something you'll want to keep putting off for tomorrow. No sireeee bob. Don't do it. Don't fall into that trap. The essay is such a key component in making you "stand out." Sarah can attest, admissions officers go through tens of thousands of applications each year. They get used to seeing the same things over and over again....president of this....captain of that.....volunteer of this......winner of that. An absolute essential way of showing that you are different is the essay. And it's not just a way to show that you are different, it's a way to show that you've "got game." It's a way to make that admissions officer fall in love with you and become your advocate to the rest of the admissions office.

Below are two of my essays that I used on my college application to get into Princeton. The first one is about basketball and the impact it had on my life. When I was younger, me and my three brothers performed at half-time during professional (NBA) basketball games and big-time college basketball games. We performed at the European Championships in Germany, in front of the Dream Team (MJ, Magic, Larry Bird, etc) at the Tournament of Americas, and other events. We were showcased in Sports Illustrated for Kids, on Good Morning America, in the Washington Post. It was a wonderful experience. We were basically like the Harlem Globetrotters, except kids. We were called the Whiz Kids. We traveled all over the place. It was a wonderful learning experience. This first essay is about that. Everything in the essay is real even though I call it a "dream."

The Dream Ride

The dream was a race car, going in and out of turns, running into obstacles, and dependent on gas. This dream was one reserved only for the privileged, blessed, and special. Fortunately, I was one of them. I was meeting everyone. I was meeting Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Shaquille O’Neal, Dick Vitale, Red Auerbach, Bill Cosby and Bob Costas. I was seeing the place where JFK was shot. I was standing on the grounds where Lincoln gave his Gettysburg Address. I was climbing the high walls of the German castle of Neuschwanstein. I was riding in a Good Morning America limo through Central Park, New York City. I was buying trinkets at the night markets in Taiwan. I was strolling through the Massachusetts Bay Colony, learning, searching, and becoming. And no, this wasn’t a dream.

“Mick, it’s show time,” my brother yelled as the half-time horn made the buzzer and the New Jersey Nets raced past us into their locker room.

My deep, soothing reflection on life quickly turned into an uneasiness in my stomach. We were about to perform in front of thousands of screaming fans and the nerves in my little seven year old body were kicking in. The two basketballs were still in my tiny arms, ready to go. The security guards ushered us out onto the floor. The music exploded, the crowd erupted, and Continental Arena was on its feet. The Hagen brothers, known as the “Whiz Kids,” were at it again, performing their “mini Harlem Globetrotter” routine at halftime of a Nets game.

At a very young age basketball opened many doors for me. I gained a perspective most young Americans don’t get: the world is big. Through basketball I was able to acquire an education no PBS program could provide. I was traveling the world and seeing things normal kids could see only in textbooks or on Sportscenter. My eyes had been opened; my windshield had been defrosted.

In my latter day basketball career I have learned even more. Leaders can take a team further than imagined. A team accomplishes more than an individual. Competition is one of God’s greatest gifts. Whether competing for girls or competing in a basketball game, I have learned that competition is what makes the world spin. Basketball has given me this edge: a “refuse to lose” mentality, an aggressiveness towards life. Yes, I’ll be competing with the brightest and best at Princeton, but I refuse to lose. My “drive” is matchless. I will have the victory lap. Thanks Mr. Naismith, inventor of basketball; thanks coach, teacher of life.

Education was the purpose; basketball was the vehicle. Dribbling, shooting, and passing an orange ball doesn’t seem like much, but you’ll never believe the mileage it has given me. It has surely been a dream ride.

Some Puzzling Remarks

Gypsies, princes, and kings from all over the world came to see this puzzle. All came in hopes of solving it, but the puzzle of Mick Hagen was too difficult.

Their efforts were all in vain.

No one can put me together. And I don’t know if anyone ever will. I have innumerable pieces. They are all shaped differently, colored differently, and sized differently. They lay scattered across my floor, waiting patiently for some extraordinary event. Many confident problem solvers take one glance at my puzzle and quickly run the other way. Otherswill stay long enough to look into my eyes, but depart daunted by the mystery which I hold.

Some people get close to solving this puzzle, but soon realize more pieces are added, some pieces are taken away, and some pieces are transformed.

Oedipus once tried solving me. He couldn’t do it.

I baffle; I bewilder; Yet, I enlighten; I inspire.

I am unique. I am weird. People have no idea where to begin when trying to solve me. My oddness goes far beyond my minor obsessions for showering in the dark, putting my right sock on before my left, or eating a slice of pizza starting with the crust.

Rather, it comes from an array of idiosyncrasies, one of which is my mind.

Like most Princeton applicants, my mind can “number crunch” and recall facts with no problem. However, it is the imagination, the creativity, the mental toughness, the innovative ideas, and the vision I have for myself that really makes me so unique. These are things no interview, essay, or résumé can demonstrate. Perhaps if we had a time machine we could travel ten years ahead and see where I sit. Your decision would be simple, but a time machine is something we don’t have.

My ingenious mind is supplemented by my heart, another peculiarity that makes my puzzle so hard to understand. It is the heart that won’t let adversity or challenges stand in the way of future plans. It’s the heart that loves the doubters and the laughers. One day, it is with this heart that I shall thank the cynics. It is with this heart that I shall hand them a business card with some cookies, saying most graciously, “I couldn’t have done it without you. You, who built trials and obstacles. You, who lacked faith, I thank you. This is a token of my appreciation to you. God bless you.”

My heart has such an amazing will and desire to succeed. I know that no amount of failure will ever discourage it. Puzzling? Perhaps. I baffle; I bewilder; Yet, I enlighten; I inspire.

I’m a computer nerd. I’m Hispanic. I’m an artist. I’m a jock. I’m a leader. It’s like mixing many different puzzles together. It creates much confusion for the person trying to solve it.

“This puzzle is unworkable,” screams a participant as he rolls his eyes and brings both palms to his forehead.

I baffle; I bewilder; Yet, I enlighten; I inspire.

Perhaps once I find all the pieces, I will be able to solve my own puzzle. Where the other pieces are, I do not know; but Tiger Land is the first place I’m looking. Solve me, scatter me, box me or bag me; I am a puzzle. I am Mick Hagen.