Being the first in my family to obtain a college degree represents a personal triumph and a profound legacy of resilience and aspiration. It is a poignant acknowledgment of my family's sacrifices and the barriers they have faced in pursuit of a better life. Growing up, I witnessed my parents’ unwavering dedication to hard work despite limited educational opportunities. Their experiences instilled a deep-seated reverence for education as a transformative force. Earning this degree symbolizes the breaking of generational cycles and the creation of new possibilities for those who follow. I am particularly drawn to pursuing a degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, a field that intricately weaves together psychological principles and workplace dynamics. This discipline captivates me because it addresses the critical intersection of human behavior and organizational effectiveness. I am especially interested in how organizations can cultivate supportive environments that enhance employee well-being and optimize productivity. I firmly believe that when employees feel valued and engaged, they contribute more meaningfully, ultimately benefiting both themselves and their organizations. By studying this field, I aim to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to enact positive change within various organizational contexts. My long-term ambition is to become a management consultant specializing in organizational development. In an era marked by rapid technological advancements and increasing workforce diversity, organizations face unprecedented challenges. I aspire to provide strategic guidance that enables companies to navigate these complexities, fostering adaptability and resilience. My goal is to assist organizations in developing robust internal processes and nurturing inclusive corporate cultures, ensuring they thrive in a dynamic business landscape. Moreover, as a first-generation college student, I feel a profound obligation to give back to my community. I am committed to mentoring students who may feel disheartened or uncertain about their educational journeys. I understand the unique challenges faced by individuals from similar backgrounds, and I am passionate about sharing my experiences to inspire and empower others. By fostering a culture of education and encouragement, I hope to illuminate pathways for future generations, ensuring they recognize their potential and the opportunities available to them. In summary, being the first in my family to earn a college degree is a significant milestone that fuels my ambition for lifelong learning and personal development. Through my studies in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, I aim to equip myself with the tools necessary to effectuate meaningful organizational change. Ultimately, I envision a career in management consulting that not only allows me to excel professionally but also empowers others, paving the way for a more inclusive and supportive environment for aspiring leaders.

In a time where climate change and environmental degradation pose significant threats to our planet, having a sustainable lifestyle is more vital than ever. My daily life reflects intentional choices to reduce my carbon footprint and promote a healthier planet. One of the most impactful decisions I make is prioritizing public transportation and walking over my vehicle. By relying on public transport or my vehicle, I significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with car travel. This not only helps cut down my carbon footprint but also shows a greater appreciation for my community and the environment. Additionally, when I do need to drive, I make an effort to carpool to further minimize my impact. Food choices are another area where I strive to make a difference. I focus on purchasing local and organic produce, which not only supports local farmers’ markets but also reduces the carbon emissions linked to food transportation. By adding more plant-based meals to my diet, I lower my carbon footprint, as animal agriculture plays a huge role in greenhouse gas emissions. I also want to reduce food waste by planning meals carefully and not wasting leftovers. Reducing energy consumption is also a part of my daily routine. I limit the use of heating and air conditioning, opting instead for natural ventilation by opening a window or layering clothing if it is colder. I also make sure to unplug devices when not in use and rely on energy-efficient appliances. By being mindful of my energy consumption, I have saved on utility bills and contributed to a decrease in fossil fuel demand. Moreover, I engage in mindful consumption by prioritizing quality over quantity. I practice minimalism by decluttering and donating items I no longer need, thus prolonging the lifecycle of products and reducing landfill waste. Whenever possible, I choose sustainable brands that prioritize eco-friendly practices. Understanding the importance of reducing my carbon footprint is essential for the collective well-being of our planet. The impacts of climate change are increasingly evident, affecting global health, biodiversity, and weather patterns. By taking small impactful steps, I contribute to the sustainability movement, inspiring others to adopt these small practices. In conclusion, my daily choices reflect a commitment to living sustainably. By prioritizing public transportation, making conscious food choices, reducing energy consumption, and practicing minimalism, I want to have a positive impact on the environment. Reducing our carbon footprint is not just a personal responsibility; it is an important step toward ensuring we help create a sustainable planet for future generations.

First off, I believe mental health is essential because having a sufficient knowledge of human behavior, thoughts, and emotions as we continue to grow from childhood to adulthood is necessary. I believe that practicing mental wellness and grit will help me improve the social and psychological connections in my interpersonal and professional relationships. Psychology can be seen as a broad term for analyzing and coming up with logical answers to the roots of a lot of our problems. My approach to psychology is through humanities. As we grow, our sense of worth, sense of meaning, and sense of life ultimately come from the interaction with others and the stories we hear. I have learned and continue to learn that as humans we articulate our feelings more than our actual thoughts. Most life experiences are what they are through emotion and remembering the range of feelings rather than having a clear understanding of the experience itself. Given the unprecedented mental health crises that the world is going through and their impact, as a future Child Psychologist, I feel that I can contribute to the alleviation of mental and emotional distress just by being kind to myself and other people who aren't quite able to easily develop emotional resilience and cope healthily with their problems. Not all people are granted the space to share their concerns with those surrounding them, unfortunately, and it takes immense courage to share your feelings with a practical stranger as well. So the best way that I can approach the situation is to first, honor a person for wanting to share their story and listen to them attentively without judgment. How we receive and respond is facile. Whether we'd like to admit it or not, society can evolve us and not always in the best way so I'd like to help someone establish change in their lives. Some ways that I maintain my mental health is by not forcing myself to be in chaotic or overwhelming environments just because I want to feel like I belong. I always set boundaries and communicate my feelings to everyone no matter what. Taking breaks is a huge one for me because I feel like I should always have a full calendar of tasks to do or events to go to, but it is fine to relax and rest. One last thing that helps me maintain mental wellness is practicing gratitude. I reflect on my day and remind myself of the privileges I have and the blessings I have received.

First off, receiving a bachelor's in Psychology with a concentration in human development will provide me with sufficient knowledge of human behavior, thoughts, and emotions as we continue to grow from childhood to adulthood. I believe that using this discipline in my profession will help me improve the social and psychological lives of other people, specifically children. Psychology can be seen as a broad term for analyzing and coming up with logical answers to the roots of a lot of our problems. My approach to psychology is through humanities. As children, our sense of worth, sense of meaning, and sense of life ultimately come from the interactions we have and the stories we hear. I have learned and continue to learn as humans, we articulate our feelings more rather than our actual thoughts. Most life experiences are what they are through emotion and remembering the range of feelings rather than having a clear understanding of the experience itself. This is why I want to focus on children specifically. Given the unprecedented mental health crises that the world is going through and their impact, as a future Child Psychologist, I feel that I can contribute to the alleviation of mental and emotional distress in children who aren't quite able to easily develop emotional resilience and cope healthily. Not all children are granted the space to share their concerns with those surrounding them, unfortunately, and it takes immense courage to share your feelings with a practical stranger as well. So the best way to approach a child who is experiencing any form of dismay is to first honor them for wanting to share their story and listen to them attentively without judgment. How we receive and respond is facile and children reproduce it very quickly. Whether we'd like to admit it or not, society can evolve children and not always in the best way so I'd like to help a child establish change in their lives. It sounds very cliche to say, but children really are the future and it's because we inevitably grow. It is our origin stories, coming to terms with our experiences, and how we decide to use them that have an impact on our families, friendships, and then the world. It is every person's inner child that seeks change in a certain area to appease them and I, being a Child Psychologist, can help children seek change in the right places.

Growing up I didn’t have any sense of individuality, I followed what most people did and believed what everyone said. I was outgoing and very caring even to those who had hurt me. I was naive and a little too forgiving, but I don’t blame my old self for the decisions they made, they didn’t know all that they do now. I am very grateful for all the fake friends, manipulators, liars, etc. They taught me what love is not, what friendship is not. I could’ve let all the hurt turn me bitter (even though I did let my anger get the best of me at times that I did regret later on) but my hurt turned into wisdom and fuel. I was 11 years old when my parents got officially divorced. Before that, my mom and dad were drifting apart and we all were exposed to a lot of hatred and violence. I was too young to know about trauma or healing, so the mishaps seemed more like small problems for the present day. I took on the role of the low-maintenance child. The one that never slipped up and got good grades. I pretended that I needed nothing and had no worries. This was a big role for a little girl to take on. I didn't express my needs or feelings to anyone. I was the listener or the emotionally supportive friend. I thought that by taking on this job, I would be relieving my family of any stress or of being a burden somehow. Through the years I've realized that suppressing my feelings only made me resent my family. I blamed them for not teaching me how to be open and expressive to other people and how to trust others with my feelings. But through this last few years, I've learned a lot about the versions of myself that I had curated. Even though my good listening skills developed from a traumatic space, I am very attentive and caring to others. I can create space for others, but I still set boundaries to prevent emotional dumping. My room now serves as a place of release, calmness, and solitude, not a place to exclude people from or push others away. I stop seeing myself as the victim, so instead of saying “This happened to me”, I say “This happened for me." I want to guide others in their journey to figuring out who they are and who they were before their trauma. I want to reintroduce them to the things and places they loved and how to forgive themselves for any of the mistakes they may have made in the past.

Growing up I didn’t have any sense of individuality, I followed what most people did and believed what everyone said. I was outgoing and very caring even to those who had hurt me. I was naive and a little too forgiving, but I don’t blame my old self for the decisions they made, they didn’t know all that they do now. I am very grateful for all the fake friends, manipulators, liars, etc. They taught me what love is not, what friendship is not. I could’ve let all the hurt turn me bitter (even though I did let my anger get the best of me at times that I did regret later on) but my hurt turned into wisdom and fuel. I was 11 years old when my parents got officially divorced. Before that, my mom and dad were drifting apart and we all were exposed to a lot of hatred and violence. I was too young to know about trauma or healing, so the mishaps seemed more like small problems for the present day. I took on the role of the low-maintenance child. The one that never slipped up and got good grades. I pretended that I needed nothing and had no worries. This was a big role for a little girl to take on. I didn't express my needs or feelings to anyone. I was the listener or the emotionally supportive friend. I thought that by taking on this job, I would be relieving my family of any stress or of being a burden somehow. Through the years I've realized that suppressing my feelings only made me resent my family. I blamed them for not teaching me how to be open and expressive to other people and how to trust others with my feelings. But through this last few years, I've learned a lot about the versions of myself that I had curated. Even though my good listening skills developed from a traumatic space, I am very attentive and caring to others. I can create space for others, but I still set boundaries to prevent emotional dumping. My room now serves as a place of release, calmness, and solitude, not a place to exclude people from or push others away. I stop seeing myself as the victim, so instead of saying “This happened to me”, I say “This happened for me." I want to guide others in their journey to figuring out who they are and who they were before their trauma. I want to reintroduce them to the things and places they loved and how to forgive themselves for any of the mistakes they may have made in the past.

My dream life looks very versatile. I would be a child psychologist and/or Art therapist. I would live in New York City or somewhere nearby. I love all kinds of art so I'm sure I would go to many museums and shows. Waking up in the morning to go to a coffee shop near my home and enjoying the city lights at night. Just to show off a little bit, attend every pride parade or celebration to praise who I am. But I also love hiking and connecting with nature, but living in New York there are so many buildings, I would have to move somewhere more rural-ish. I also feel as if I would have a blog or write articles because I have a gift-of-gab. Maybe write poetry also and sell a few of my art pieces as well. Everything that I will be doing will be in alliance and synergy.

Being polite is one way I try to have a positive impact on the world. Just simply smiling, saying ‘excuse me, or letting someone go first in line can help make their day better. When being polite I begin a ripple effect, the next person I talk to has a better or improved attitude so they’re most likely to be friendlier to the next person they have an interaction with. Maybe this can go on for hours or days but it is not guaranteed that one individual will be nice for the sake of it. Even if I'm in a bad climate, I know how to regulate my emotions so that I don't respond badly to the slightest complication with someone else. They won't carry that energy elsewhere and I can feel relieved knowing that their day could not have been possibly ‘ruined’. Treating someone with kindness and respect without expecting anything back can go a long way.

If you don't mind I wrote this essay in the third person because I am not in that state of emotion anymore. An example of adversity they have endured is experiencing depression and losing many of what they thought were close relationships. Last year, in September they had a very traumatic experience dealing with their family. It sent them into this shock, they felt very disconnected from their body and they just kept replaying what had happened in their head. They would come up with these scenarios of what could’ve happened in that situation. They felt very misplaced and light-headed, they didn’t know how to deal with it so they distracted themselves with tasks such as cleaning or drowning themselves in school work. Any voice speaking to them sounded muffled or far as if they weren't listening, they didn’t talk much about how they were feeling, they were confused by what ‘it’ actually was. This went on for about 9 months, they cried themselves to sleep multiple nights. During those months they got interested in psychology and mental health. Researching disorders and how genetics could interfere with your mental health. Also disappearing from social media, they had no interest in taking any photos or updating people on their life. They thought nobody cared and felt alone. School became very stressful but they pushed through until the end of the year. Their mental health became very apparent, you could see they were dissociated and a little distorted. They had built resentment against family and isolated themselves. They eventually got tired of looking and feeling the way they did, so they got therapy and got a summer job. This helped them stay consistent and have something to rely on. At first, therapy felt more like a person just giving them a task and unsolicited advice but as time went on they made progress. Progress with most of their family and progress with loving themselves. Practicing patience and compassion with their selves and others prevented a lot of miscommunication and misunderstanding. They had new friendships and got used to openly expressing how they felt daily. Usually, it was hard to even say how they felt because there was never a word that could truly fulfill that gap. Healing from trauma and lost relationships only helped them to look in the mirror and see what had still been here for them. They realized that nobody else can pick you up or help you every time, you have to be strong in those moments where you feel like you can't even take another step. Also working hard on loving themselves and setting boundaries with themselves. Who and what will I allow into my life? Why reminisce when the past is completely over and cannot touch you? Digging their selves out of this hole and finally having hope in their future, they never knew how strongly they exist. They're allowed to take up space and speak loudly about their feelings. Their resilience will help them be confident and believe in the potential they have. Sharing their skills and creativity with everyone they come in contact with.

Someone that I admire from history is Emily Dickinson. She was born in the early 1800’s to a very well-known family. Growing up she became very distant and her parents weren't very present. She was a loner mostly and spent a lot of time in her room just writing how she felt onto paper. She was a sensible woman and had many hobbies to occupy her time. When I first learned about Emily I was very interested in how much I could relate to her, especially as I get older and take more of a firm stance on my beliefs and values. She also inspired me to write poetry too and I see it as a way to express how I'm feeling without being too direct. I think a lot of people saw her as this hermit-like person and maybe a little depressed. People assume that if you spend a lot of time alone or prefer to not be social 24/7 that something is wrong with you or that you're unusual. I think Emily may have had some sort of anxiety (social anxiety) or just simply introverted, most artists are like that. Reading stories about her, I saw a lot of myself in that and felt like ‘wow there are other people like me!’. As I got older I went through depression and isolated myself from everyone for reasons other than Covid, writing how I felt whether it was a diary entry, telling a story, or writing poetry, it always made me feel better.

Dealing with depression at a young age was horrible. I felt alone and felt I didn’t have a support system. I had to pull myself out of that dark hole and keep my head above water to survive. I realized that no one is going to save me like myself, I am the only one who can take me where I need to be. My mental health has shaped my goals by having to be consistent and dragging myself out of bed to do it, having discipline without having any motivation. Talking to my acquaintances/ friends and family even though I would’ve rather been in my dark room and cry about people who used or abandoned me. Doing the uncomfortable things in order to grow and see things from a different perspective instead of seeing myself as the victim everyday. I understand the reality of the world is not all peaches and cream but I still decide to look on the bright side. I should make use of my time and love myself and to others who have been there for me. Why be sad about the past when I make peace with it and focus on the now and future?

Social Media: Ayjha_ First off, being apart of this minority has its perks, I am welcomed into open arms of people who have similar stories and have dealt with the shame of others for what we cannot control or change. I am proud to be LGBTQ+ because I know they have my back and that I am in a safe space to express who I am freely.