History Main / GoGetterGirl

* ''KimPossible''.

* Sabrina from ''SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' becomes this. She is something of a nerd in high school and devotes herself to her ambitions of becoming a journalist.

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The Go-Getter Girl is a young woman who devotes herself to achievement above everything else. The reasons for this might vary: she may have some personal goal she feels she needs to accomplish, she may be desperately seeking the approval of others, or she may simply enjoy competing against her peers and taking the number one rank. In any case, she's well aware of the effort that her path requires, but she's more than up to the challenge. She finds it easy, or at least manageable, to discipline herself to avoid distractions, and while others might complain about the expectations of superiors, she will do whatever she can to meet and exceed them.

* Azula from ''AvatarTheLastAirbender'' is a good example of why this is a bad thing to be if you grow up in a ruthless family and culture environment. Not only does meeting people's expectations in this case mean turning terrifyingly evil, but [[spoiler:the need to throw love and kindness to the wayside is enough to turn one insane at the first hint of a setback]].

* Amber Atkins in ''Film/{{DropDeadGorgeous}}''. She's a good student, holds two jobs, volunteers at the anorexia wing of the hospital and still has time to practice her tap dancing!

* Blossom of ''ThePowerpuff Girls''. "Power-Noia" revealed that she has a serious complex for being perfect.

* Andie and Joey from ''DawsonsCreek'', both of them, being part of troubled families and suffering from a terrible home life, consequentely becoming ambitious overachievers.

* Andie and Joey from ''DawsonsCreek''.

* Joey Potter from ''DawsonsCreek''.

* Yukina Miyazawa from ''KareKano'' maintains a facade of outward perfection in order to obtain praise from others. Her classmate's accidental discovery of the girl behind the mask kicks off both the plot and her own path to self-discovery.

* Annie Edison from Series/{{Community}}: [[WordOfGod her character was inspired]] by {{Election}}'s Tracy Flick. Although it hasn't worked out so well for her in the past (a disastrous Adderall addiction during high school) she grows into a (mostly) mature and kind but still very driven young woman over the course of the series.

* Annie Edison from {{Community}}: [[WordOfGod her character was inspired]] by {{Election}}'s Tracy Flick. Although it hasn't worked out so well for her in the past (a disastrous Adderall addiction during high school) she grows into a (mostly) mature and kind but still very driven young woman over the course of the series.

* Annie Edison from {{Community}}: she was inspired by {{Election}}'s Tracy Flick. Although it hasn't worked out so well for her in the past (a disastrous Adderall addiction during high school) she grows into a (mostly) mature and kind but still very driven young woman over the course of the series.

Examples:

* A good example is Yukina Miyazawa from ''KareKano'', who maintains a facade of outward perfection in order to obtain praise from others. Her classmate's accidental discovery of the girl behind the mask kicks off both the plot and her own path to self-discovery.

* Tracy Flick from ''Film/{{Election}}'', pictured above, epitomizes the negative aspects of this trope, as her need for achievement is shown to get in the way of her forming meaningful personal relationships.

* [[HarryPotter Hermione Granger]], full stop. A good example of how someone can navigate through the pitfalls of this trope and end up a mature, balanced woman.

* Rin Tohsaka from ''FateStayNight'' could be a MostTriumphantExample. Drive to excel? Check. Need to present a perfect front to her peers? Check. Secret impolite, slacker side? Check. Willingness to put personal relationships aside in order to attain her goals? Check (sorry, Sakura). Luckily for her, she has a good heart and a resiliant personality which sees her through even after running into setbacks.

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/flick_1089.jpg]]

* Tracy Flick from ''{{Election}}'', pictured above, epitomizes the negative aspects of this trope, as her need for achievement is shown to get in the way of her forming meaningful personal relationships.

She gets straight A's in her classes, while also taking charge of multiple school clubs and volunteering at a homeless shelter in her spare time. She's unfailingly polite to her peers, older adults, and younger children alike. She might not be a fashion plate, but she never steps outside her home without looking perfectly presentable. Nobody doubts that big things are expected of her.

They are, right? Otherwise, it would be so frustrating for all that effort to go to waste!

The Go-Getter Girl is a young woman who devotes herself to achievement above everything else. The reasons for this might vary: she may have some personal goal she feels she needs to accomplish, she may be desperately seeking the approval of others, or she may simply enjoy competing against her peers and taking the number one rank. In any case, she's well aware of the effort that her path requires, but she's more than up to the challenge. She finds it easy, or at least manageable, to discipline herself to avoid distractions, and while others might complain about the expectations of superiors, she will do whatever she can to meet and exceed them.

Despite all appearences, things aren't always as easy for the Go-Getter Girl as they may seem. [[TechnicianVersusPerformer All the discipline that goes into creating her persona of perfection may crowd out the possibility for sponteneity, fun, and other pleasures of youth.]] It's not that she doesn't want these things deep down; it's just that she feels that she doesn't have the luxury of acting on them. For this reason, [[StepfordSmiler while she might always seem completely put-together in public]], in the few moments she has to herself in private, she's liable to let herself go and act like a slob and a slacker...or at least fantasize about doing so. At extremes, the pressure of maintaining her image can get to her, causing her to snap and turn evil or insane.

That being said, TropesAreNotBad. Although the Go-Getter Girl must deal with a certain amount of pressure, her personality also allows her to accomplish things others of her peers cannot. If she is able to find balance in her life, she has the potential to become a true leader.

Romance is often a secondary concern in such a character's life; she's more focused on her future for the time being. If her mind does turn to love, she's liable to look for someone of a status befitting her own perceived value. In the case where she is secretly attracted to someone she sees as beneath her, [[{{Tsundere}} expect a lot of furious denials and put-downs as she (generally unsuccessfully) tries to distance herself from her feelings]].

If the Go-Getter Girl is in high school, she is very often a ClassRepresentative or StudentCouncilPresident, as well as focused on entering the IvyLeague, {{Oxbridge}}, or TokyoUniversity. College Go-Getter Girls will be racking up internships and academic distinctions as they position themselves for an appealing job when they graduate. The oldest a Go-Getter Girl is likely to be is her late 20s or early 30s; by this time, if they have continued to stay on the path to success, they will have begun to take on real responsibilities and grown into [[IronLady a different trope]].

Go-Getter Boys can exist, but they are much rarer. This may be due to the historical legacies of sexism, as discrimination has forced women to prove themselves in order to get the same rewards as men. For this reason, a boy with academic talents or personal charisma is more likely to focus on developing those traits alone, without the need to appear perfect in other areas.

Compare and contrast with PluckyGirl, a similarly strong and determined character type, but one that shows more comfort with breaking rules and flouting social conventions, as well as TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask, who has these pressures thrust upon her as a member of royalty rather than freely choosing them.

Examples:

[[folder: Anime and Manga]]

* Ayaka Machida in ''StellviaOfTheUniverse'' is extremely ambitious, to the point where she is ready to commit amoral and outright criminal acts to come out on top.

[[folder: Film]]

* Tracy Flick from ''{{Election}}'' epitomizes the negative aspects of this trope, as her need for achievement is shown to get in the way of her forming meaningful personal relationships.
* In ''LegallyBlonde'', Vivian Kensington is the prototypical hard-working, serious Harvard Law School student, which is why the ditzy yet competent Elle Woods annoys her to no end.

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[[folder: Literature]]

* [[HarryPotter Hermione Granger]], full stop. A good example of how someone can navigate through the pitfalls of this trope and end up a mature, balanced woman.
* Eilonway from ''TheChroniclesOfPrydain'' is very devoted to achieving excellence as an enchantress, and, like Hermione, can be somewhat snotty to those she sees as slacking off.


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[[folder: Live Action TV]]

* Rory Gilmore from ''GilmoreGirls''.
* Sabrina from ''SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' becomes this. She is something of a nerd in high school and devotes herself to her ambitions of becoming a journalist.
* Laura Palmer from ''TwinPeaks'' is a subversion of this. She does well at school, has a part time job, a boyfriend, and regularly volunteers with a local Meals on Wheels... But the deeper the investigation into her death probes, the darker her life seems.
* Topanga Lawerance from ''BoyMeetsWorld'' starts off as a weird GranolaGirl, but develops into this trope as the series goes on.


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[[folder: Newspaper Comics]]

* Susie Derkins from ''CalvinAndHobbes'' may be only five, but she already exemplifies this trope, making her a perfect foil for BrilliantButLazy Calvin.

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[[folder: Video Games]]

* Mitsuru Kiritsugu from ''{{Persona 3}}'' may have originally have taken on this role because of her family responsibilities, but she certainly pulls it off (even if she sometimes thinks about what it would be like otherwise).

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[[folder: Visual Novels]]

* Rin Tohsaka from ''FateStayNight'' could be a MostTriumphantExample. Drive to excel? Check. Need to present a perfect front to her peers? Check. Secret impolite, slacker side? Check. Willingness to put personal relationships aside in order to attain her goals? Check (sorry, Sakura). Luckily for her, she has a good heart and a resiliant personality which sees her through even after running into setbacks.
* Shizune from ''KatawaShoujo'' has this personality, while at the same time needing to deal with her deafness. Perhaps because of this, she often comes off as more abrasive than others of this type.
* Young Eva from ''UminekoNoNakuKoroNi'' started out like this in high school. Then her father told her she could never become family head because she was a woman. Things got worse from there...

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[[folder: Western Animation]]

* Lisa Simpson from ''TheSimpsons'' often will behave like this, although she is still young enough to balance it out with moments of acting like a normal girl.
* Azula from ''AvatarTheLastAirbender'' is a good example of why this is a bad thing to be if you grow up in a ruthless family and culture environment. Not only does meeting people's expectations in this case mean turning terrifyingly evil, but [[spoiler: the need to throw love and kindness to the wayside is enough to turn one insane at the first hint of a setback]].
** Katara also has some of these traits.

[[caption-width-right:350: You know some went to the trouble of individually icing all these cupcakes deserves to be Class President!]]

[[caption-width-right:350: You know I deserve to be Class President, since I went to the trouble of individually icing all these cupcakes!]]