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‘Can Do’ Attitude

“Every time I create a reason to quit, I also find a reason wanting to come back”

Can Do Attitude Leo Dones

This is how Leo Dones, a licensed Engineer, described his Kumon experience while trying to recall his Kumon journey way back in 2010. He was in third year high school when his mom enrolled him in the program after knowing about the Free Trial campaign.

Eight years later, Leo recollects how his past undertakings in the Math Program largely contributed to where he is today.

“If something we want is easy, then it is possible. But if it so hard, then we have to try each possible condition, until what we want is within our grasp.”

The Kumon Experience

At first, Leo was unaware of the method until his mom enrolled him in the Math Program during the Free Trial month. He was skeptical about the touted benefits that the program offered. But since it was a free trial, he decided to grab the opportunity.

Leo found everything relatively easy compared to the actual topics he was learning in school during the next few months of his stay. “I thought that I was just having a trip back to memory lane since my starting point was in Level A (Horizontal Addition and Subtraction) so I felt like it was a mere walk in the park,” he adds.

Unfortunately, Leo stopped three times throughout the program because he found out that he had to focus all his effort in school as a fourth year graduating student in 2011. He started to feel like Kumon was an additional load to his studies. “I even thought I did not need to go back and refresh my high school mathematics to add to the bulk of my studies as an Electronics Engineer student,” Leo recounts.

This was the case until he went to college and realized that the advanced calculations tackled in the worksheets made sense to him.

Finding the Inspiration to Go Further

For Leo, recalling the concepts, processes, and formulas from the previous levels slowed his progress towards completion. “Thankfully enough, I have my parents who constantly inspire and push me to finish the last stages of the program, and I consistently prayed to God for him to give me the incessant passion to finish my worksheets.”

Leo served as an inspiration to his younger sister too who is already nearing completion in the Reading Program. “It’s good to know that somehow, I became an inspiration to her,” he proudly says.

Leo also shares how Kumon became a meaningful path he needed to take to have an edge in college. It gave him a ‘can do’ attitude and felt that if he overcame the Math Program, then he can overcome any issue may it be in work or in life.

“At work, Kumon taught me how to create alternative ways in solving anything even if the issues were technical. Some of these issues are related to computer algorithms to see how they work. As a Software Engineer, Kumon developed my skills to think out of the box. Since the program will only show you the basics, you will be forced to think outside of the box especially on the higher levels. This skill helped me so much in shaping my work ethics,” he adds.

A Lifelong Pledge to Learning

“Everything you want has to be worked upon with due diligence and passion. The program was not easy, and it made me realize that we have to push the envelope in order to strive to accomplish our dreams.”

Leo’s first advice is simple: begin with an end in mind.

If your eyes are dead set on the prize, then nothing can stop you from reaching that goal. “If this is possible for those before me, then it is possible to me too,” he shares.

His last advice is quoted from a video game which says, “Heroes are never as polished as the legends that surround them.” Surround yourself with the most inspiring people that will help you push yourself to complete the program. “For me, there was never a day that my mom would stop inspiring me to complete the program. Finally, keep praying to God for the constant desire to complete it.”

 

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