Recently, I got together with a good friend who I hadn’t seen in a while and caught each other up on our busy lives. We discussed the normal things that college students talk about such as our significant others, how much we both despise frat parties, what classes we are and aren’t passing, and everything in between. But we also talked about more than the typical, “small talk.” I was incredibly impacted by our discussion of knowing your worth and being confident in yourself. I realized how immensely important it is for people to understand these two ideas.

I am going to share a short story from my days as a naïve adolescent that led me to the realization that, I am more than what someone else thinks I am. It is easy to get caught up in a boy at age fifteen and forget about yourself in the process. I convinced myself that I loved a boy who, looking back, I know didn’t love me back regardless of the nice things he said to me. He made me feel something I had never felt before and it was exciting. Being called “little cutie” by an older boy who I would do anything for made me feel like I was on top of the world. However, being called “little cutie” and told that I had, “such a cute smile,” to make up for being treated like I was worth nothing to him was a feeling that I will never forget. It took me about five years to realize that that feeling is something I will never feel again.

I would like to note that this experience and so many others gave me the ability to get to know myself and become more confident in who I am. I, in no way, regret being treated like I was a dead bug on a windshield by one silly boy. Instead, I use these experiences to grow and learn more about myself every day. As a college student, I tell myself that, “I am more than what someone thinks of me,” every day. I tell myself this after I fail my latest economics test. In almost every situation, I tell myself this. It is beyond important for people in this world to realize their self-worth because it will lead to a happier, healthier life.