When Ben reached out to me, he was convinced he had the best admissions essay topic about helping out in a factory for a summer. After all, his family, friends, and even teachers all said this was a unique way to show his personality. Unfortunately, after multiple revisions, his authentic self just couldn’t come across no matter how hard he tried to make it work. It was an important lesson in not forcing a topic —even if you’re convinced it’s the coolest idea ever— if it’s just not working. Maybe the idea is great but your experience wasn’t impactful enough to write a whole essay about it. The language felt verbose and overwritten, which is another sign the idea wasn’t working.