Stepping out of your comfort zone can be stressful in more ways than one. It means taking risks and being prepared for failure if it comes to it.
As I reflect on my sophomore year of college and my two years to date, I have realized that while I have taken many risks, I am still hesitant to step outside the box I have placed myself into. I have tried to take advantage of almost every opportunity that I have been presented with so I can experience new things, but I am still cautious. Hence my first goal for the next academic year – take more risks. The risks that I have taken this year have paid off tremendously and I think that if I keep doing that, I can really develop myself personally.
My next goal would be to make sure I’m not putting too much on my plate and doing self-check ins from time to time. I have a tendency to not know how to say no and overcommit, and it leads to a lot of unneeded stress. I think that if I check in with myself more and ask myself how I am doing and handling the things that life throws at me, I will benefit from that greatly. Self-check ins are my third goal that I am striving toward.
My fourth goal is to study abroad in the spring. I’m hoping to go to Italy or Paris and do the cliché “finding yourself” thing that so many people do while traveling. I feel as though I have lacked the past few years in self-identity and I think that by exposing myself to new cultures and experiences I will be able to understand who I am more. Again, this is another goal within a goal, making my fifth goal developing a self-identity and learning about who I am.
My sixth and final goal for junior year is to not hold myself back. I get very in my head at times, and it can be difficult to accomplish things when my head isn’t in the right place. I need to believe in myself and my decisions in order to be all in on what I want.