is this too cliche?

mhartmann
Tue, 21 Aug 2007 21:17:51 +0000

I’ve read many student essays that have ended with the claim that because of a certain experience the writer now “lives each day to the fullest” (including ones in which the writer’s life was genuinely in danger). I think they’ve all flopped–this is because the concept of “living each day to the fullest” is vague and the writers usually don’t try to elaborate on how their new philosophy has played out in their actual lives. It comes across as an empty statement, something we always say after tragedy has struck. If you can be very specific and concrete about how you’ve changed, if you can prove it to the reader, it could work well. But if you don’t have examples to back up statements about how you’ve changed, I’d advise against that approach.