Rather than focusing on some politically or socially motivated issue as I generally tend to do, I would like to take this time to discuss something else — accepting yourself.

I generally pride myself on being a relatively accepting person. For the most part, it comes along with being involved in the speech community. Despite this though, I’ve had trouble accepting myself.     

I speak from a point of privilege as I write this. There are very few things about myself that I’m self-conscious about; I’m generally a very confident and outspoken person (some would even say too confident at times), and I’m honestly happier than ever with the current state of my life.        

Despite this, there has also been one thing I’ve had trouble accepting. Throughout my life, I’ve always been pushed towards law school, medical school and business school. I always convinced myself that one of these would somehow start to seem appealing, but as the weeks of college passed by, pursuing any of these typical “smart-kid” careers has started sounding worse and worse. 

I want to coach speech. This is something I’ve been too embarrassed to say for the longest time, solely because I wasn’t ready to accept perceived judgment from others. I’ve known it deep down inside since the start of my senior year, but it's been difficult to accept it. I will never have a career that makes my parents proud, I will never be a CEO, and I will never be a senator. Despite this, I will be happy.      

It’s time that we all accept ourselves for who we truly are, whether that’s a future stay-at-home mom, future teacher, future non-profit lobbyist, or even the future president. Even more importantly though, we must find the courage to pursue our passions, regardless of what society and those around us pressure us to do.  

I am so thankful to finally be on a track to do something I love every day for the rest of my life, and my wish for everyone is that they can not only find that one thing they are passionate about, but pursue it with everything they have.