My name is Len Friedland.

For the past 20+ years, I’ve been an advertising copywriter.

When I’ve told people this in the past, many thought that I was responsible for putting the little copyright symbol on Doritos© bags and Lysol© cans and Scotts Turfbuilder Weed & Feed© bottles.

And no, I’m not kidding. (Meanwhile, that would be a pretty good gig.)

In reality, my job has been to help brands — from toothpaste to tech — stand out in a crowded marketplace by telling the right story, in the right voice, to the right audience.

Sound familiar?

Writing a college essay isn’t different. You’re trying to stand out in a sea of other applicants, connect with a real person on the other side, and make them feel something about you and your potential candidacy.

Enough that they’ll go into a room of their peers and bosses and advocate for “shark-tooth girl,” or “100 roller coasters in 101 days kid,” or however they recall you from your essay.

It’s not about writing about something amazing, unless you’ve actually done something amazing. Most teenagers haven’t.  It’s about writing something authentic. Something sticky. Something that will matter to a university that’s trying to put together its best incoming class of all time.

That’s what I try to help students do. Not push some perfect narrative, because that’s unrealistic (and kind of boring). But instead, write an essay that sounds like you, reflects who you are and who you might become, and lands emotionally with whoever is fortunate enough to read it.

If you do that with your essay, then you’ve done all you can do.