thebabyperks

Running clears my mind instantly. As soon as I lace up my shoes and head outside my overwhelming thoughts escape me as the music from my Spotify playlist beats from my headphones.
While running is a great temporary fix, eventually you have to stop running... running from your problems, your future, or even yourself. Everything catches up with you.

Last night I was overthinking and I reached out to one of my best friends. She offered me a lot of advice and openly listened to me ramble about my problems (even though she has enough going on in her own life, so thank you, friend). She gave me a lot of advice that stuck with me, but what struck me the most was when she told me that my worth is not dependent on anyone.

See that's my problem.

So many times I feel like I seek validation from other people when really I only need to seek validation from myself. Life is too short to continuously think you aren't good enough. 

Other people should not define your self worth. Trying to gauge what people think about you 24/7 becomes exhausting (I've also learned that no one actually hates me, it's just my mind raising the doubt and constantly needing reassurance.... it's fine...)

Running isn't bad, in fact it can be pretty great. If anything, I'm learning to enjoy the runner's high and to not let those positive feelings fade away.

Until next time,
Taylor xx

PS: To my friend mentioned above, thank you, I don't have enough words to describe how much you mean to me.

It's USA Triathlon's "#triweek" and they challenged the triathlon community to share their stories. Earlier last semester I posted about my fitness journey which you can read about here if you haven't already, I talk about triathlons in that post as well. 

When I first think back on my triathlon experience I automatically go to the first triathlon I did in 2013 (Trizou in Columbia, Missouri). I was only 14 years old, a baby compared to all the 30-40 year old veterans. I knew I could do it, but all of these fears ran through my mind while I was setting up my transition. The moment I jumped into the Mizzou Aquatic Center pool, though, all of my fears went away. I engaged completely in the sport and was ready to race.

Crossing the finish line at my first race

After I crossed the finish line, everything was a blur. I'm going to assume I was exhausted, but also so incredibly proud of myself. 

See, I'm a very hesitant person. When my triathlon coach, Dan, originally talked to me about joining the Tri Club I did everything in my power to avoid him, therefore avoiding giving him an answer. Dan is extremely persistent and before I knew it I was at the O'Fallon YMCA for my first practice. I worked so hard from those early practices in February to get to the point where I could do my first sprint triathlon in May. 
               
Since my first triathlon I have personally exceeded where I thought I'd be 4 years ago. I've raced Trizou three times and plan to again this next year. I placed 3rd at the Lake St. Louis Triathlon my junior year of high school, 1st at the Alligator Creek Triathlon, and raced at numerous other courses around Missouri. Pictured below, I also did BikeMS with my Grandma Sue and dad my sophomore year of high school which I would have never done without triathlon training.

I talk about triathlons and the triathlon community a lot because it means so much to me. I really can't describe how much it has impacted me over the past 4+ years. When I show up to races I am no longer the youngest girl. Many people are surprised when I tell them I've been doing triathlons since I was 14 and they ask me about my experiences. That's the greatest part about our community, it is so incredibly supportive. You could be in the packet pickup line or setting up your transition and people will always stop, say hi, and listen to your story. 

This #triweek has given me the opportunity to hear even more people's stories. If you want to learn more about the triathlon community I would definitely recommend following USA Triathlon on Facebook, Twitter, or their website.

A lot of freshman tips center around move in and what to pack. What many people tend to neglect is giving advice once you're in school. Here are some tips I have for more academic related topics.

Textbooks:
My process for the past three semesters in regards to getting textbooks has remained the same. I go to my college's bookstore website and plug in the classes I'm taking. They create a list of what textbooks are required for each class and give you the rates they charge for the books. I pull up a Google Doc, then copy and paste the textbook info (make sure to get the ISBN #), and record how much the school would charge. Next, I go to Chegg and plug in those ISBN numbers to see if Chegg is offering rentals cheaper than what my University offers. It honestly just depends on the textbooks if it's cheaper or not. For example, last spring I got 1 book from Amazon and the rest from Chegg because they were significantly cheaper than on my school's website. This fall, though, all of my rentals are around $9-$12 on my University's website and significantly more on Chegg (or sites like it). You really just have to do your homework and shop around. You're going to spend a significant chunk of change no matter what you do. 

My textbook plan for this fall

People also always ask "are you really going to use the textbook?" And again it just depends on your class and the teacher. I had some classes that used the textbook for the first 2 weeks and then never touched it again. In hindsight I could have forgone getting the book entirely and just borrowed from a friend. However, I also would rather be safe than sorry and at least have the textbook to lean back on. Then there are other classes like my math class where I had to have the book, we used it every day. 

Getting Involved:
From the moment you step on campus, they will tell you it's important to get involved which is very true. I would recommend not signing up for everything at the student activities fair, even if the person talking to you is super nice. You can definitely sign up for more information, but know that it's okay to say no to certain organizations. Especially at a small school like mine, it's easy to get involved in seemingly everything. Commit your time to what you really like and you'll be happier, too.

School work/Attendance:
This also depends on how big your school is. I've heard plenty of people talk about sitting in the front of the lecture hall (which Drury doesn't have, but most schools do), going to the professor's office hours, etc. These are valid points, take up the professor's opportunities to help you. It's important to establish yourself with your professors, especially if they're in the department of your major. This could be difficult depending on your school size. At Drury the professors actually know who you are, even the ones who aren't in your department. Be active in participation at class and this will help you establish those working relationships.

It's funny because if someone doesn't come to class the professor will say, "oh where is (x)" and students will respond "well we saw them at the Commons earlier," (the commons is our cafeteria), or "they were in my class earlier today." If you aren't in class it's very obvious.

Even if you're at a larger school, I would still recommend going to class. I don't understand how you can pay thousands of dollars for classes that you don't bother to go to. I get missing a class or two, but if you are absent more than you're present, I feel like you should reevaluate. 

Those are just a few of my tips for having a successful school year. The first two weeks after move in are really when you establish your routine and figure out what works best. After that you'll be good to go and ready to take on the rest of your freshman year.

If you have any questions, feel free to message me on Facebook and I'll do my best to help :)

Until next time,
Taylor xx

As you have seen from the many Facebook posts, Instagram uploads, and tweets, I spent my last 5 days at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix, Arizona for the Kappa Delta National Convention.

It was a five day experience of growing in our sisterhood, learning more about our Kappa Delta, and listening to a multitude of powerful motivational-speakers. 

I could talk forever about the greatness of the Kappa Delta National Council. I cried throughout many of the council's speeches. They are such empowering, inspiring, loving women and I can only hope that I accomplish as much as they do one day.

They are actually my everything

One of the speakers that the Kappa Delta Foundation brought to Convention was Lisa Nichols. Shocking- I cried. The most important message I took from Liza was to live unapologetically. She talked about how she hopes she goes through life falling, that she gets the scrapes and bruises. To her, the biggest testament of your strength is getting back up after you've fallen. Showing your strength by overcoming your failure is better than never taking a risk, never getting any of those bumps or bruises along the way.
I needed to hear this. Many times I overthink situations based on what "could happen" instead of just experiencing them. By limiting yourself to trying to only be successful, you in turn limit your opportunities. Life is short, too short to not do what you love. 

She also discussed how this is her year of re-choosing herself. Since she first began public speaking, she had created this persona that did represent herself 15+ years ago. However, as she reflected on who she was going into 2017 she realized that she had changed. She took a 6 week vacation in Spain to re-choose everything in her life: her clothes, her speaking engagements, how to love herself. She broke everything down into three categories. 1) I choose it [aka things she wants in her life how they are] 2) I choose it but with alterations [things that were good in the past but should be altered for who she is now] 3) Leave it, it's done [things that worked in the past but are no longer the best for her present self].

As I head into my sophomore year of college I hope I can re-choose what is most important to me so that I can become a better version of me. By clearing out the clutter in life, you allow more space for your authentic self.

I have so many more stories to share from Convention but this was definitely the one that stuck with me most. 

Until next time,
Taylor xx