Integration 1 Prof. Todd Taylor Moreau FYE Integration 1 15 October 2021 Throughout everyone’s life, mine included of course, there are certain situations, actions, or reactions that form one's core beliefs and core values as a human. It is important to be able to identify these values, know how they affect your life, and know where you developed these values from. Many of my core beliefs are based on experiences I have had in my life, some tragic, some triumphant. While I wish that some of my values were formed in different ways, I know that my past life experiences are why I became who I am today. In this paper I will touch on what some of my values are, how they have been formed in me and how they affect me today. First, I believe that in order to form good relationships with people I must show vulnerability. This first belief is one I didn’t necessarily think about until the first week of Moreau. In the first week we watched a video titled “The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown. This video particularly resonated with me due to this quote, “People that have a strong sense of belonging believe they are worthy of love and belonging.”(“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown - Moreau FYE Week One). I believe the quote sums up vulnerability perfectly. It talks about how a person needs to think they are worthy of others attention. In order to be worthy a person must sacrifice something, which is a huge part of vulnerability. A sacrifice shows that someone is truly vulnerable and truly wants a connection. I think this value was built through my connections with my friends at home. When I was in highschool one of my best friends died of cancer and everyone in my grade came together to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&feature=youtu.be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&feature=youtu.be support one another. Vulnerability was at an all time high during this sad time and caused everyone to see new sides of the people they were closest to. While the circumstances were terrible I know that I wouldn’t be nearly as close to all my friends back home if it weren’t for the vulnerability we shared at that time. Second, I believe that in order to truly find yourself you must believe in something bigger than yourself. The way I see it, any person can chase the next paycheck or the next worldly thing, but in order to find yourself and truly be happy a person must focus on finding a good feeling or moral goal. The focus should not be on worldly things, but on things that make your soul and the world feel good. The main focus for week 2 of Moreau was whether one should live their lives by a Resume vs. Eulogy (“Should You Live for your Resume or Your Eulogy” by David Brooks - Moreau FYE Week Two). I think it is important to know that everyone deep down wants to live a life so people remember them in a good light, but that’s tough to do. That’s why I think it is important to believe in something bigger than yourself. If a person has a bigger goal in life then it makes it a lot easier to not focus selfishly on worldly things, but expand their sphere of positive influence. I learned alot about this whenever I am working with a team, whether athletic or for a group project. The best work and effort of people comes out when others are depending on you. When people are vulnerable and you know their happiness depends on you then you can achieve great things and be a better person because of it. If people can do that in every aspect of their lives then there is no telling how people will feel and what they will accomplish. Third, the experiences one has had in their life affect their narrative, never be too quick to judge someone when you don't know their story. No one has the same story, absolutely no one. Even if people look alike, talk alike or live alike they are still all different. This knowledge is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM essential for being a just person in this world. It is commonplace for all people, myself included, to pass judgement far too quickly on people, whether it be because of how they look or what they say. This unfair judgement is many times unavoidable because it is how our brain works. “It sets people up to overgeneralize, sometimes leading to discrimination even when people feel they are being fair.” (“How to Think about ‘Implicit Bias’” by Payne, Niemi, Doris - Moreau FYE Week Seven). The most important thing is to be aware of this overgeneralization so a person can counteract it. In my experience judgement can interfere with great friendships and impede progress. Some of my best friends back home are from a neighboring rival town, and when I was in middle school I would refuse to interact with them because I hated them for no reason. But then in my junior year of high school my cousin started to date a person from a different town and they have become my best friends and have helped me excel in life. When I first met them they instantly became my friends. We started training for track together and I can confidently say that these unlikely friends contributed greatly to my success on the track my senior year. These are friends I never would have had if I stuck to my preconceived notions of them, but after meeting them they are some of the best people I know. I almost never gave them a chance because I was so stubborn in my judgement. The most important thing about my core beliefs is that I feel they make me a more complete person. Without these core beliefs there would be something missing in my life. Whether it be the ability to truly help the world around me, or the close relationships I have formed with my friends; none of it would come to fruition without my core beliefs as a foundation. One of the most interesting things about core beliefs is that many times they are subconscious before anyone realizes they are there. As I look back at my life I see that many of the things I do in my life, many of the ways I act, are represented in these first 7 weeks of https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-think-about-implicit-bias/ Moreau. From how I try to relate to people to how I act when no one is watching it all is because of the core beliefs instilled in me. The coolest thing to think about is not necessarily how someone’s beliefs have affected their past, it's how their beliefs will affect their future. This is only magnified once people can identify what they can and should believe, causing an even greater impact on the future.