How can a person be their best self? In order for someone to be their best self, according to the Distinguished Young Women Scholarship program, a person should focus on five elements, including being involved, healthy, studious, ambitious, and responsible. There are many different ways students can incorporate these elements into their daily lives.
The first element is being involved, which means the ways people serve in their community. Senior, Alivya Strong, stated that she stays involved by being in many different clubs here at school and through her church. Strong continued that this helps her make connections throughout the community, and helps her be involved with everything that is going on at school. Another senior, Lilly Shaffer, stated she serves her community by being an advocate for mental health and suicide prevention. She is a part of the Cass County Zero Suicide Task Force, which has helped her stay very involved in her community. Also, Shaffer said this involvement assisted her in meeting some incredible people by staying involved with organizations such as the task force. These are just some examples of how people can stay involved.
The next element a person should consider to be their best self is being healthy. When thinking of being healthy, people should consider how to care for their physical and mental health. Alivya Strong responded that she cares for her physical health by doing yoga every day and making sure she takes her vitamins every morning. For Strong’s mental health, she stated that journaling helps her. Alivia also said she uses Sundays as a reset day, so she can rest her brain and let go of everything bad from the prior week. Lilly Shaffer continued that she cares for her physical health by making sure she takes time throughout the week to take a walk around her neighborhood, along with taking vitamins. For mental health, Lilly stays grounded and keeps her focus on the things that fill her cup up, such as surrounding herself with positive people, affirmations to lift her spirit, and journaling. Being healthy is a very important quality everyone should be thinking about.
Being studious is the third element a person should consider to live their best self. Shaffer mentioned that one of the things that has helped her with this category has been holding herself accountable for what she desires in life. Lilly also said that it has definitely made her push herself harder every day because she has big goals after high school, and needs something to show that she is capable. Shaffer stated that pushing herself in her education is how she works to become a lifelong learner. Aliviya stated she stays studious because of her love for learning new things every day. Strong replied that she is a curious person and plans to continue being a lifelong learner by attending college and teaching in her future career. Being studious is not a quality that every person can say they do well.
The fourth element is being ambitious. Being ambitious means setting goals for yourself. Alivya Strong mentioned her goal in life is to have a loving family and teach kindergarten. Another goal Alivya wants to achieve is traveling to many different countries. Lilly stated her goals to become her best self, include attending college and earning her degree in elementary education and social services, becoming an advocate and voice for people who can not do it for themselves, and staying humble and overall being a good person in a world where people often choose not to be. I definitely believe that setting goals defines what it means to be your best self.
The final element considered in living your best self is being responsible. Being responsible is a quality every person should embody, and is not difficult to achieve. Lilly Shaffer mentioned she is responsible for having and holding a job, having strong time management skills, accountability for her actions, and speaking the truth even when it is hard to. Alivya Strong stated she is responsible for having a job that she shows up to every day without calling off, never being behind on school work, and helping support her family in a variety of ways.
In conclusion, there are many elements included for a person to live their best self. The five elements include being involved, studious, ambitious, responsible, and staying healthy, which lead a person to their best self. Being your best self may be challenging at times, but follow these elements to overcome challenges to continue growing into the best version of yourself.
