I’ve decided to touch upon a subject this week that I don’t usually address. The topic? Perseverance. Recently, I’ve been reading about people who are tired and would just like to give up, whether it’s on attending classes, homework, or even life in general. I can’t tell any of you what to do, or how to run your life, but I can share one of my favorite quotes with you when I’m feeling the same way. “It always seems impossible until it's done” - Nelson Mandela.

There were so many instances in my life when I felt like giving up on something, just because an obstacle got in the way of the goal I was trying to accomplish. This one time, I was trying to learn a new song on the guitar, and since it seemed too hard to learn, I gave up before I even started. My grandpa was the one who helped motivated me into completing what I thought was an impossible task, since I’m terrible at arpeggiating. Once I had accomplished the song, I felt so great about myself, and my self doubt started to decline.

Of course it helps to have at least one person in your life motivate you to do the impossible, but the most important person that you need to believe in yourself is you. Over the years, I’ve learned that no matter what I may be going through, I have to persevere until I complete what I started.

This can be compared to a 5K run for charity. You may not like the idea of running, but you may enter the race anyways since it’s for a good cause. Though once you start the race, there’s no going back. You’ll be motivated to finish the race since it’ll benefit people in the long run.

You may not want to do your homework, finish college, go through another day without your ex, or spend another second around someone who makes you feel like you’re worthless, but you’re still here. You’re here for a purpose, and you haven’t given up because you’re strong enough to overcome any obstacle that’s standing in your way. No matter what it is, you’ll complete the challenge in the end.

During the 5th grade, I was stage crew for the Seussical Jr. play that went on. One line that I’ll never forget was when JoJo was singing a song. The line that was most repeated throughout the song was “Anything’s possible.” This has proven to be true in my life so far. Whether it was writer’s block, a research paper, bullying, arpeggiating complications, a common factor throughout all of it was self doubt. I was doubting myself constantly, and being an introvert definitely didn’t help my situations. However, one day during my Junior year of high school, I had written a song called “Never Give Up.”

Within a few days, I had combined the music with the lyrics, and by my Senior year, I was performing my song with a band, in an actual music venue. Writing the song had opened up my eyes, making me view life in a way that I had never even thought to view it before. Suddenly, my grades began to improve, I became more patient with my writing and arpeggiating, slowly started becoming extraverted, and above all, I began to believe in myself, which was the most important step toward eliminating that constant self doubt.

No matter what it is, whether it’s climbing Mount Everest or asking that special someone on a date, you shouldn’t keep thinking about the “what if’s.” Eventually, you should believe in yourself enough to take that leap of faith and do what makes you happy. Things may seem impossible sometimes, but with the proper motivation in yourself, you can achieve anything. You’re stronger than you think, and hopefully someday soon, you’re able to realize that.