Understanding my Mission Statement By This was my first stab at the mission statement: All my interactions, experiences, and everything I do will be done to become a better version of myself. With this view, the world will become my library, helping me gain a better understanding of myself. With this understanding I will realize my purpose in life. Then, everything I do will be done to master whatever my purpose will be, and I will become better at my craft. It’s terrible, unclear, and choppy. It beats around the bush. I know what I am trying to say, but I did not say it. It worries me that others will not understand who I am, so I’ll take another stab at this mission statement and better articulate my thoughts. I modeled my mission statement from a Kobe Bryant quote I love. He said, “Once you know what it is in life that you want to do, then the world basically becomes your library. Everything you view, you can view from that perspective, which makes everything a learning asset for you,” – Kobe Bryant Kobe knew that he wanted to be a basketball player when he was eight years old. Me, well I’m sophomore in college with an undecided major, and to be honest, I’m not even trying to choose one because right now; I don’t feel ready to give the right answer. I may not have the same sense of purpose as Kobe did, but I am still motivated. Every day is uniquely similar. There are reoccurring themes, similar problems I try to solve, and familiar situations I find myself in. Each time I come across these familiar instances, I try to understand and solve them, almost as if Life is one big game and I’m trying to beat a level in it. Right now, I am motivated and focused on beating a level. It’s going to sound weird, but a big thing I focus on each day is my posture. I constantly find myself uncomfortable in my body. It is something that bothers me immensely. Most of the time when I am sitting in class, I am not listening to my teachers. Instead, I am focusing on how I can sit better. I try to keep my back straight, shoulders rolled back, engage my leg muscles, and focus on keeping my feet connected to the ground. I find myself trying to make these corrections everywhere. Whether I am eating in the dining hall, at my desk doing homework, or lying-in bed watching YouTube, my mind is constantly on my body. I think about sitting upright while I ride my bike to Moreau on Tuesday’s morning, applying what I believe to be the correct amount of pressure to my feet when I walk, and the dexterity in my fingers while I write with a pencil. I’m obsessed with trying to feel in control of my body. I became so obsessed with my body after, last year, I learned about a term called mindfulness. Mindfulness is the basic human ability to fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing, and not overwhelmed by what is going on around us. To be mindful, which is a trait I value and find very important, I need to be in control of my body. When I am thinking about my body as I’m sitting at my desk, riding my bike, or writing, I’m becoming overwhelmed by what is going on around me, and thus I can’t be mindful. I strongly feel a need to be mindful in every moment of my life. After I discovered mindfulness, I was intrigued and did some more research. I learned that being mindful leads to the flow state. The flow state is a state of being so immersed in whatever you are doing that you achieve a sense of ecstasy, a sense of clarity, and you know exactly what you are doing from one moment to another. This type of clarity is very important, and I believe it is a necessary tool to achieve understanding. Understanding is just the first part of a chain of events for me. When I understand something, and it clicks, I gain confidence. When I am confident, like anyone else, I am able to perform to the best of my ability; Regardless of whether “my best” is good enough, feeling like I am giving everything I possibly can in the activities I do is when I can take pride in myself. The “activities I do” are just as broad as I make it out to be. I believe in giving 100% effort in everything, no matter what. I do not listen or care to hear any reasons that I should not give 100% effort. I have never played water polo before, but if I do, I will never acknowledge that fact and let it exempt me from any embarrassment I may find myself in when I inevitably make mistakes the first time I play. I will put as much thought into a rather small homework assignment as I would a ten-page essay. If I can, I will always go out of my way to help a friend or family member with whatever they ask of me. I even try to carry out simple chores like cleaning the garage, stacking wood, or taking out the trash what I believe to be “the right way”. The right way for me just isn’t the wrong the way. I know the wrong way when I feel it; I get lazy. It’s the times I choose to leave a wrapper on the ground I clearly saw I dropped, the times I actively avoid proofreading my papers, and any other moment where I know I can do better, but I choose not to. To me, there’s no reason not to approach life with this kind of mindfulness and attention. If you try hard enough, and really look closely, you can find value in almost anything. That is why I love Kobe’s quote so much. Again, it reads, “Once you know what it is in life that you want to do, then the world basically becomes your library. Everything you view, you can view from that perspective, which makes everything a learning asset for you,” – Kobe Bryant After riding this out, I feel like I have a better understanding of my mission statement, and I feel confident enough to take another stab at it: I want to be present in every moment, and I want to use this clarity to conquer the obsession I have with being in control of my body and all my future obsessions. I never want to stop being obsessed. I always want to find ways that I learn to become a better person, for myself and others. And finally, I want to approach everything I do, no matter what, with a high level of attention and a standard of excellence. I believe when I view the world from this perspective, everything will be a learning asset for myself, and the world will become my library.