Capstone Integration Pierpoint 1 Professor Retartha Moreau 29 April 2022 Following My Heart Drafting personal mission statements often has the ability to lead to self-discovery, revealing knowledge that previously may not have been known. Personal mission statements give us the opportunity to get to know ourselves better and tangibly guide our life in the direction that will provide us with a sense of purpose and self-identity. As my time as a Notre Dame freshman comes to a close, I reflect on the past eight/nine months and how much personal growth I have witnessed, but also look forward to the growth that will come with each passing year. I strive to always stay true to my beliefs, my core values –– integrity, honesty, compassion, inclusion, fair-mindedness –– so that my life can be lived by my moral code. I do not give in to my anxiety or insecure thoughts but rather maintain confidence as I approach new obstacles in life: I will honor my needs and, from time to time, self reflect on my behavior, thoughts, emotions, motivations. My heart guides me in important decisions, allowing myself to choose what is best for me, follow my passions, and what will lead me to happiness and fulfillment. And finally, I will unregretfully be myself; if people do not click with me, I will not blame myself or search for problems, but rather accept who I am and, ultimately, feel proud of who I become. Ever since middle school, my core values of integrity, honesty, compassion, inclusion, and a nonjudgmental attitude have defined how I live my life and treat others. These core values have not changed as I aged, implementing them into everyday life; however, through my college experience, I have truly understood their importance. I have some of the most amazing people Pierpoint 2 that I am so grateful to call my friends and each of us have had social conflicts this year. I had a roommate who made my living environment extremely hostile and she treated me and my friends very poorly as time went on. I have always applied my core belief of kindness and compassion towards others, inevitably avoiding conflict and always trying my best to please others: I soon learned that my core beliefs apply to me just as much as those around me. I slowly realized that I have the ability to treat myself with kindness and I no longer have to let people walk all over me. With each confrontation, I was honest, civil, and respectful of both opinions, but I no longer allowed myself to be the brunt of other people’s struggles. This was an extremely difficult lesson to learn, but when I look back, I understand how important it was in my growth as an independent woman. This mission to always remain kind, honest, and inclusive will continually be challenged with social conflict and other difficult situations throughout my remaining time as a Notre Dame student, as well as throughout the rest of my life. However, through my growth in applying my core values to myself as an individual, I came to appreciate my self value more than ever. Additionally, I also appreciated my friendships as my core beliefs could be reflected in the friends that I have moved close to. In Week 7, we discussed the relationships of a Life Well-Lived, and I am now aware that those who have similar beliefs of kindness, compassion, honesty, and integrity are people that I yearn to surround myself with. Furthermore, during Week 9, I came to value the importance of accompaniment: I will always be there for my friends no matter what the circumstances are. My core values extend farther than just being compassionate, but also always showing up whenever the people in my life need someone who can listen and have a shoulder to cry on. This portion of my mission statement will remain the same throughout the entirety of my life as I truly recognize the gravity of treating myself and others with respect, inclusion, compassion, and humility. Pierpoint 3 As someone who struggles with anxiety, it can be effortless to give in to its desires and its voices as life brings about new struggles. Before coming to college, I was extremely nervous about how my anxiety would manifest itself differently than in highschool; would it be worse, would I allow myself to go out of my comfort zone? Even though college was a large step up from high school in regards to work load, I have found myself managing my anxiety better than ever before. Instead of saying no to every social event so I could study and earn an “A,” I decided to start venturing out, meeting new people and pushing myself to focus on my mental health. It is difficult to articulate, but I saw a tangible alteration in myself in which I became more confident with myself, not always walking on eggshells with the intention to please. This segment of my mission statement could arguably be the most important in how I want to orient my life: I cannot live a life well lived if I am not honoring my needs and staying in tune to my mental health. It is obviously very difficult to live out this mission with each and every day, but I will make a conscious effort to check in with myself and prevent my feelings from boiling over. During my future time at ND, my anxiety will fluctuate with increasing workload or even in social environments, but with each obstacle comes the ability to strengthen my responses with overwhelming emotions. Through each roadblock, I will strive to remain confident in my abilities as I cannot achieve my goals if I do not believe in myself. My anxiety no longer controls me, but I, instead, have the power to control my anxiety. As I continue to age, I become more conscious of the role that choosing passions (over materialistic gains for example) has in determining my happiness. Throughout high school, there were a variety of activities that I participated in so I could add it to my college resume, even though it didn’t influence any feelings of joy, instead enumerating my daily stress levels. Throughout college, I had the liberty and the freedom to choose what I wanted to be involved in Pierpoint 4 and, I didn’t realize this until now, by following my passions, I was enjoying participating more and more. This awareness proves very important for my future as I will continue to strive for the path that encourages my passions and desires rather than choosing the path that could provide more stability within my comfort zone. I hope that in my remaining time as a Notre Dame student, I will continue to follow my heart, permitting my hunger for medicine and helping others to trump all other struggles and obstacles. Furthermore, my friends around me will know if I am following my heart or if I am just listening to the voices of others and I hope, that as the people who know me best, can tell me to reflect on my previous frequent behaviors and force me to rethink my future decisions so that whatever lies ahead of me, I know that my passions drove each and every one of my choices. Finally, I will unregretfully be myself, reminding myself that I can be confident of who I am and who I continue to be. In just eight months, I have seen a tremendous amount of growth in myself as a young, independent woman. It is almost as if I finally grew into myself, I finally began to feel proud of my accomplishments, appreciate my strengths, and work towards improving my weaknesses. I have grown in wisdom and (continue to try to) embrace myself as who I am. Accepting who we are is a pivotal moment in life in which some of our internal insecurities and struggles seem a little lighter. However, this is a type of act in which it continues; in other words, as we age and evolve, a sense of acceptance still needs to be cultivated. I will need to act with courage, face my fears and failures, and refrain from linking my self worth with my academics. In order to strengthen this part of my mission statement I am going to repeat the sentence, “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, courage to change the things I can, wisdom to know the difference.” Even though this Serenity Prayer may seem simple, it provides me with the ability to accept myself and feel confident with Pierpoint 5 who I am. It is definitely easier said than done to not care about what others think of me, but I will strive to make it a point that I cannot control other people and their beliefs: the only thing I can do is be myself and that is the best I can do. When coming to college and especially committing to Gateway, the uncertainty of my freshman year seemed to loom over me for an extended period of time as I had no idea whether I would be happy or if this risk would be right for me. Now after living in South Bend for more than half of a year, I indubitably know that I made the right decision. I have never felt more like myself than I did during fall semester. Spring semester brought a multitude of highs and lows, but with obstacles came a personal growth I never could have imagined. I worked harder than ever, but I also did not let my anxiety rule over me, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and saw myself blossom into a more secure woman. I believe that with each coming year I am going to revise the mission statement that I have written above and do my best to live out my goals and aspirations. Notre Dame has influenced so much self growth in just one year and I am so excited to see how I will continue to grow and flourish over the course of four years.