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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Mass Amherst chapter.

Perspective: it generally defines how we feel, what we see, and what we make of things. The reality of life is that it’s all about perspective. Perspective can vary from person to person, and your own perspectivescan change over time. When I actively knew I wanted to change my perspective, I started having a more positive outlook on life. By being actively aware that I needed to make a change, I was able to become a lot more conscious of my thoughts and actions. My goal was to worry less, live more freely, and to understand that no matter what, life goes on, regardless of what people are saying or thinking.

I started looking at my life from the perspective of my childhood self and my future self, and I realized that I could not be fully happy if I concerned myself with temporary opinions and words. I learned that I just had to keep moving forward and that everything in life was a lesson, whether we wanted to realize it or not. We have some of the best days and some of the worst days ahead of us, and you can be on the right track and have a bad day — no one’s story is perfect. In fact, perfection cannot be achieved. We typically only see the good aspects of other people’s lives, but I had to learn from within that people who seem perfect have days where they don’t want to get out of bed or days where they feel embarrassed or ashamed. It’s normal to have bad days. It’s normal to be upset with yourself. Changing the way you think takes time and it’s not easy, so I had to immerse myself in positive thinking.

Every time I started to wonder what someone thought of me, if I embarrassed myself, or something of the sort, I asked myself: “Why does it matter? Will my life go on? What is the worst thing that could happen?” Usually, after dissecting those types of questions, I came to the conclusion that life was too short to be anything less than my true self. You have to stop wondering what could have been or what should have been, and you have to start accepting the notion that everything happens for a reason. Some of your hardest days can give you the strength to become an even more emotionally powerful person.

Life is about overcoming battles and learning as you go, and it doesn’t get easier because easy is boring. There are going to be good days, and there are going to be days you wish you never had to face, but being present is all about seeing why those things happened to you; that’s when you start to become overtly thankful for everything. I wish I knew sooner that life is much too fragile and much too short to have a negative outlook, but the changes I have made in my life to become a happier person are contributing to my growth and enjoyment of life. 

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Daniella Sears

U Mass Amherst '23

Daniella is a writer for the Her Campus chapter at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She is a sophomore currently studying Hospitality & Tourism Management with a minor Managerial Economics. Outside of writing, Daniella loves spending time with family, playing with her puppy, and trying new recipes!