“I have learned that as long as I hold fast to my beliefs and values – and follow my own moral compass – then the only expectations I need to live up to are my own.”

-Michelle Obama

There will always be people – family, friends, co-workers, and even the societal expectations of complete strangers – who EXPECT something from you based on their own outlook on life. We all filter things differently and we all have different belief systems – and that’s OK! Other people don’t need to think like me and believe what I do to be a good person – and vice versa.

I once tried to convince myself that I could incorporate someone else’s religious views into my belief system because I wanted to spend my future with them. In the end, though, his views were not my own and I wasn’t meant to incorporate them into my life. I felt terrible about it at the time but then I realized that I have to stay true to myself.  I learned that as long as the beliefs and values we each hold and live by help us strive to be a little bit better than we were yesterday, we’re on the right path. Don’t try to follow another’s path. If you are following your own, the right people will be drawn into your life.