Motivation is what helps us get through our daily lives, whether that’s getting out of bed, doing homework after school or work, or staying consistent with exercise. However, motivation takes more than just completing a task—it requires mental strength to build and maintain. The good news is that it’s okay to start small. By building positive habits and recognizing what motivates us, we can gradually strengthen our motivation and become more consistent in our everyday lives.

Motivation is often portrayed as something entirely up to the individual, made up of their own discipline, routine, and personal drive. As integral as these are, there is an equally important factor that is often overlooked: connection.

I learned that having positive thoughts is just as powerful as possessing negative ones. The only difference is that one produces peace, while the other emits pain.

While I, and many other students, are excited to enter the summer season, there’s still an air of nervousness that follows. For me specifically, it’s the nervousness of graduating from college. The freedom granted is one I’ve never experienced before. It’s where I can freely move through the world without an academic pursuit. Now, it’s time to find myself and go out into the world.

On a personal level, freedom is not something that can be universally defined. What one person finds freeing could feel constricting to another. When working towards finding personal freedom within our lives, first ask yourself what that means to you.

Sometimes the bravest thing we can do is imagine that “crazy” version of life. The one that feels just out of reach, the one we quietly push away because it seems too good, too different, or too uncertain ever to be ours. It’s the life where you are fully aligned, deeply fulfilled, and no longer negotiating with your own happiness. And yet, despite how distant it may feel, that vision often holds who you are meant to become.

Change is necessary and inevitable. Much like our personal lives, nature is unpredictable, yet always finds a way through. Spring is particularly a powerful metaphor for change as we explore a transitional period between the old and new.

When we think of change, it can sound both scary and exciting. While I know from firsthand experience that change can be incredible, I also know how intimidating it can be. Something I believe that everyone should keep in mind is that it is never too late to make a change in your life, whether it’s big or small!

While the nostalgia I feel for the game may be as simple as being a game I played in my youth, there is something deeper about Animal Crossing that evokes this feeling amongst many of its players.