WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO YOU? WHY?
It took me a while to think about this 'prompt' as I have always given importance to aspects of my life like family, friends and sports. But I have always felt that self-respect' is what is important to me. It gives me that feeling of confidence and pride that helps me to set firm boundaries for myself and meet my own expectations. This helps me to confront and overcome all difficulties and challenges. It brings out the happiness that I look outside.
I started giving importance to self-respect only when I learned hard lessons of my life when I was frivolous and carefree. My grades started falling in my early high school days. This was a big blow to my own self-confidence and expectations. this was the time for self-introspection to find the purpose of my life. Instead of being despondent this time, I realized that every time I made a mistake, I would lose my confidence. This realization helped me to identify my mistakes and rectify them. My teachers and parents continued to have that confidence in me that I had lost. Their trust helped me to regain my lost confidence and pride. I decided to set goals and benchmarks for myself every day and aimed to achieve them. Slowly and gradually, I started showing improvement in my grades and continued to follow my passion for sports. The hard work, effort and dedication I put in during those days still make me, my family and friends proud of myself. This has helped me to repurpose my life goals in every aspect. I realized I need to value my own worth to show it to others. But at the same time, I would not let my self-respect turn into an ego as I endeavour to improve my whole being.
Why is self-respect important to me, it is because it helps me to know the values instilled in me and live by them. I know my peers treat me with dignity and worth because of the confidence and pride that I have for myself.