In Pursuit

What drives people like you to undertake a mission? Maybe you have worked toward getting the leading role in a school play or organizing a fundraiser for an important cause. Maybe you are hoping to become a famous athlete, scientist, or politician after graduating from college. Perhaps you want to study unknown regions and creatures in the Amazon or be the first to live on Mars. All of these are worthwhile missions to undertake. But what drives us to undertake a mission?

Michael Phelps undertook a mission, pursued it, and accomplished it. Phelps’ mission started when he was seven years old and took his first swimming lessons. Back then, he was a little nervous about putting his head underwater, so his instructor taught him the backstroke. Phelps continued his lessons to become stronger and faster in the water, and a few years later, when he saw the swimmers compete at the 1996 Olympics in Athens, Georgia, he started to dream about becoming a champion himself. He was already hooked on swimming, but Phelps knew he had to work harder if he wanted to be the best. After many years of training, competing, and even losing some races, Phelps set a world record in July 2012 for earning more medals than any other Olympic athlete. To this day, he also holds the all-time record for winning the most Olympic gold medals.

Phelps undertook a mission since his childhood to become a champion swimmer, and is now recognized to be one of the best athletes of all time. In this unit, you will read various accounts of people who have undertaken missions to achieve their goals. Some share Phelps’ drive to become a champion, but others have different goals — like learning a new language or even moving to a new place for a better life. In this unit, you will explore the different forces that drive people to undertake missions.