My high school experience was unique in the fact that I went to an all girls, Catholic college-prep school. High school for me was a turbulent time as I fought to discover my identity and keep up with the high expectations of my high school curriculum. Going to an all girls school really guided me to focus and to come up with a plan with how I wanted to achieve my goal of attending a college of my choice. My entire expectation of high school was to determine what I needed to do to make myself an extremely viable candidate for college. I needed to keep my grades up and I needed to commit to a leadership role and extracurricular activities. It is with this in mind that I fond my interest in volleyball and dance in which I participated in for the remainder of my time at Oakknoll. Involvement in activities and leadership roles really instilled in me the value of working hard and balance.

College was a new experience in many different ways. I was officially on my own, learning to live independently from home, and balancing my college curriculum, work life, and social life. The one mistake that I made with my college experience is not stopping to really figure out my passions and where I wanted to go in life instead of just meeting expectations. I started college and I went right into what I was comfortable doing by just finding things to do on campus and keeping myself busy. I followed my interests but I didn’t visualize my future and what I needed to do to meet the goal of what I wanted to be in life. I did not realize this mistake until it was my senior year and I was at a crossroads in deciding my life after college. I took time to myself and fully realized that I wanted to really pursue my passions and become an entrepreneur.

In this moment, I looked at the bigger picture and comprehended that if I just visualized my future and the steps I needed to take to live out my passions I could have started even in high school. Every step I took and every opportunity I had I could have used to position myself towards fulfilling my dreams. I was literally going through the motions until I figured out that other people are not in control of my life but that I am in control of my life. I had to wake up, look within, visualize, set my goals, and complete my goals. Many people get stuck in the motions and the world teaches you the straight way to meeting success includes going to high school, going to college, and finding a job. I propose that instead of going through the motions to stop and look at whether that life aligns with your passions and what you need to do to realize your goals and potential.