Don't Let Others Predict Your Happiness by Brooke

Don't Let Others Predict Your Happiness by Brooke - September 2022 Scholarship Essay

Brooke McKay
Varsity Tutors Scholarship
9 September 2022
Don’t Let Others Predict Your Happiness
We’ve all gone through teenage years, waiting to be the best version of ourselves. I believe everyone always strives to be the happiest person they can be, but at some point in high school, everyone goes through a rough patch. This is where my best piece of advice came from - not letting others predict my happiness.
As I went into high school, I wanted this to be the point in my life where I truly thrived. I had a top-athlete brother who was the school’s basketball star which put a positive impact on my name. To me, I thought thriving was being a popular girl who everyone wanted to be friends with. I was a cheerleader and a volleyball player. I always depended my worth on my social status in life. Whether I was voted on homecoming court, student council, or other clubs. As I grew older and learned from the experiences of hardships where I wasn’t the top or the best, I knew this wasn’t the case in striving to be the best version of myself. To be the best version of myself, I first had to realize that I can’t let others predict my happiness. My best friend, Izzy Frick, who was a year older than I was gave me this best piece of advice. When I was at my lowest, she turned to me and told me this statement. I blew it off, but now as I get older I really put it into perspective and learned how helpful this would be in my life. Expectations were what got me the worst. I relied too much on expecting things to come my way no matter what. You HAVE to stop expecting others to make you happy. To be happy, you must give yourself happiness. Others can contribute to it, but they can’t make it for you. You must find your own purpose and be able to be happy without the influences of others as a factor.
In conclusion, not letting others predict my happiness was the best piece of advice I’ve been given. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve stopped letting others influence my happiness and have learned to do things for myself. There’s no better way to be the best version of yourself than by working for yourself and striving to be the best you can be. Once you do this, then others will just add to your happiness, without influencing it. As Ellen Degeneres said, “The thing everyone should realize is that the key to happiness is being happy by yourself and for yourself.”