Today I woke up feeling immensely proud of myself. Usually, we all question our decisions and wonder if things would have turned out differently, better even, if we had chosen something else. What if I went to a different college? What if I joined a different sorority? What if I chose a different major? We battle our inner thoughts constantly wondering how our lives could be different, but instead, we should be immeasurably proud of ourselves and what we have chosen and accomplished in order to get us to where we are today.

Today I am proud of making difficult decisions and challenging myself.

Step outside of your comfort zone, be bold, and be fearless. You must not take the easy way out and make only the simple decisions in life. Join a new club, take a class that is far out of your field, tell someone how you feel about anything at all, find a new hobby; do what you can to enhance your life instead of constantly playing it safe.

Today I am proud of my academic success.

It is so easy to beat yourself up when you do not get the grades you hoped for. But when we achieve academic success we rarely celebrate our accomplishments. Sure, we may be happy we did so well on a test or in a class and call our parents to tell them, but we should revel in our accomplishments and love ourselves for how hard we worked to get there. And from there, we should work even harder and be even prouder when we get our grades back.

Today I am proud of the internship that I applied to.

As terrifying as it is, the future is just around the corner and it is hard to feel prepared for it. However, taking the first step in moving towards the future that you want for yourself in applying for an internship that could help you land a job after college, is something to be proud of. You must take your future into your own hands and work for what you want to make your dreams and aspirations come true. You will never get what you want by just waiting for it to land in your lap.

Today I am proud of the people I have chosen to surround myself with.

Life is far too short to surround yourself with people who do not support you, challenge you, and celebrate with you. If someone does not add positivity to your life, do not stress yourself out by trying to make them happy and proud of you. Rather, find the people that are thankful to have you in their lives and that you are thankful to have in your life. The truest friends are the one who treat your happiness as their own and encourage you in all that you do.

Today I am proud of myself for getting out of bed.

Sometimes the idea of getting out of bed is daunting because you know you have so much to do; you have to study for that midterm, write that paper, and go on that run. When you wake up in that toasty warm and cozy bed on a Sunday, all you want is to reach for your laptop and put Netflix on for the remainder of the day. But you will feel so much better about yourself if you get up and accomplish everything on your to-do list that is full of things that you desperately want to not do.

Today I am proud of who I am.

Be proud that you have goals for yourself and that you have a lifetime ahead of you to complete everything on your bucket list. Be proud that you want to travel and experience new things. Be proud that you love fiercely. Be proud that you are living your life for yourself, and for unapologetically being who you are.