By: Amelia Lin

Our world continues to grow more and more connected each day. Every day is a whole new wave of people, ideas, and opinions. In the midst of all this outside commotion, it’s easier than ever to question the role we play in it—what we bring to the table. We compare our journeys to the person sitting next us, constantly wondering if we made the right decisions, took the right chances, or played the right cards. This doubt is what ultimately makes us lose trust in ourselves. We lose our gut feelings and intuition. That’s when we begin to use someone else’s rubric to assess how well we’re doing. But we will never be satisfied with the outcome because we’re no longer living a life that’s best for us; we’re living someone else’s life, someone who might very well have the same problem.  

So how do we trust that the path we’re walking down is the right one? Right off the bat, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, there is no single “right” path. Each one is a road with its own twists and turns, and each one has an exit for if you ever need to change directions. It’s never too late to turn back, and it’s never too late to change the destination.  

Second, stay true to yourself. You might not know exactly where you’re heading or what you need to get there, but everyone has a set of values and priorities that shouldn’t be compromised on the way. Trusting yourself means throwing away that rubric someone else made and creating one of your own. What’s important to you? What do you want to accomplish? What does it look like to be yourself?  

Third, the key to trusting yourself is remembering that no matter what happens, you can always come back from it. The fact that you are here today is a sure sign that you’ve been able to push through hardships countless times before. Maybe you might need a hand or someone to help guide you through it all, but you will always find a way out. And that’s why there really is no “right” path. If things don’t work out the way you expected them to, it doesn’t mean you took a wrong turn somewhere, it means the journey isn’t over yet. 

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