Ever since I was admitted to Princeton, I have felt so fortunate to have been given the opportunity to attend such an amazing institution. When I first got in, I remember thinking: what will Princeton do for me? It has taken a while for me to realize this, but that train of thought was so wrong; I should have been thinking, what can I do for Princeton? The magic in Princeton is not the place, academics, or even resources, but the people who utilize these tools to move the world forward. Princeton isn't a place, it's a people. After all, a place cannot be “In the Nation's Service and the Service of Humanity,” only a people can be.
I bring up this point to shed light on the importance of perspective in understanding the value in being a part of certain communities. At the end of the day, communities are defined by the people who make them up, not the place or anything else. Sure these other factors can influence the people and their way of life, but like I said, at the end of the day, the common denominator across communities is people. This distinction is important because it gives power to you - you can be the difference that you want to see in this world, regardless of what hand you're dealt.
I’ve come to this realization after having the privilege of visiting my old high school and speaking with a few classes of students. I was in their shoes four years ago, so I knew exactly what they were thinking - ‘Hooray! We get to skip actual class today and listen to our classmate’s brother talk about college.’ While I knew this is what they were thinking, I hope that I was able to get through to some of them and provide some good advice about college. On a more subliminal level, I wanted to inspire them to take a simple message away: make the most of every situation. Many of them will go on to college, so I told them, 1. it doesn't matter where you go but what you do once you're there, and 2. if you don't try the answer will always be a no automatically. I believe this advice applies to anyone and everyone.
The link between this realization and the broader understanding of Princeton being a people is that people (aka you) are in charge of moving the world forward. It took me a while to realize that an extractive mentality isn't the most productive; instead, to get the most out of a situation, you must give back to those who have helped you get there (including yourself). Change and opportunity do not begin when someone else gives them to you, they begin with you. For me, asking what I can do for Princeton has led me to helping deliver on the informal motto of being “In the Nation's Service and the Service of Humanity,” and I still have a long way to go since this is a lifelong journey. For you, ask not what the world can do for you, but what you can do for the world.