Personal Challenge Essay Examples. Here are the examples of essays on personal challenges: Overcoming Academic Challenges: Overcoming the challenges we face in life can be a transformative journey that leads to personal growth and self-discovery. A great example of this is when I was confronted with a series of academic papers: A personal essay is not just about recounting events, it is also about showing how those events led to personal growth or a change of perspective. Think about what you have learned and how you have changed. 8. Conclusion. Writing a personal essay is an opportunity to delve into your own story and share it with the world.3. Create a thesis statement. The thesis statement is the most important sentence and tells the reader what your essay is about. In a personal narrative essay, the thesis statement may briefly explore the events of the story. Or, it can inform the reader about the moral or lesson learned through personal experience.