To sow means to plant seeds for example and to reap means to get a reward for something you have done. If you plant corn seeds, you should not expect that peaches will grow, so that you don’t reap something different from what you sow. Since all you need to do is plant a little seed and it grows into a huge plant, it seems clear that you actually reap more than you sow.
In terms of learning, all the effort you make when doing homework, and inside the classroom is what sows knowledge in your mind. You can choose to make a better effort than another student and you will very likely gain a better understanding than they do. You have reaped more than they have since you have sown more!
If you think of your brain as a field, and you as the gatekeeper to that field, you can choose to plant positive thoughts or negative ones. You will find that it is extremely important to choose your thoughts carefully. The difference between people who have mostly positive thoughts and those who have mostly negative ones, is like the difference between beautiful flowers and a pile of weeds. Those who have chosen a positive mental attitude will attract positivity toward them. Sure, they will meet with temporary setbacks along the way, but they will just keep learning from each one, realizing that obstacles only make them stronger.
In the first post I wrote, I talked about how it is important always to take action in order to succeed. If you think about it, there is no way to reap what you do not sow, and no way to sow without taking action. You get back what you put in, and often more than that, but if you put nothing in you gain nothing.
Some students feel that just showing up to class should be enough to ensure their success. Perhaps they believe that their results depend on their teacher’s action and not their own. The truth is they do not make a genuine effort to plant thoughts in their own minds, so knowledge doesn’t really stick with them in the long-run. They are attempting to get something for nothing, that is, to reap without sowing.
Make sure you believe that you can remember facts or formulas or anything you focus your mind on. You will sow things in your own mind, only by caring enough to take action to remember them. You have everything you need for success, but you have to put it to proper use. Someone who spends lots of time thinking carefully when solving challenging problems will reap a strengthened mind.
Do you have any examples from your life where you have reaped more than you have sown? Have you found that when you give to others, you actually reap benefits for yourself too?