TOEFL Independent Task: Doing things that they do not enjoy

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? People should sometimes do things that they do not enjoy doing. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

Should we sometimes do things that we do not enjoy, or should we only do what brings us pleasant feelings? That is a difficult question. While many hold the view that people don't need to do things they don't like, stating that will make them unhappy, I believe that people should occasionally do so.

First, people can obtain new skills when they do what they do not enjoy. There are many things in life we are not familiar with, and we are usually incapable to perform well. Carrying out the task that we are not good at, we can even feel annoyed, let alone having any amusement. Nevertheless, if we struggle against and try to do the task no matter how uncomfortable it is, we will eventually able to tackle it. Gradually, we will pick up the skill needed for the task. Not only does it give us a great sense of pride, but it also provides a basis for further mastery of the subject. The perfect example of this is my friend An. He used to be a striker in his football team, but then his coach asked him to be a midfielder, arguing that he has the quality. In the beginning, he was very uncomfortable playing in this position, but he tried to play anyway. Much to our surprise, he ended up being the best midfielder of the division that year.

Second, doing things we do not enjoy helps us overcome many difficulties in life. People who only choose to do enjoyable things will get themselves accustomed to pleasant feelings. Thus, they tend to give up more easily when they encounter obstacles, which would lower their chance to be successful in life. On the contrary, if we try to do what we do not enjoy, we will become familiar with the notion of striving to accomplish things. As a result, we become more persevere and persistent. We also gain more self-confidence, knowing that we had difficult times before but prevailed over it. Those are the virtues that play important roles in our success, and only by trying to uninteresting things we can possess them.

In conclusion, we should sometimes do things we do not enjoy because we will be able to pick up new skills. Moreover, doing so will foster our perseverance and persistence, which would help us overcome many challenges in our lives.