A good day to my honarable judges, respected timekeepers, coaches, teachers and my

fellow friends.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Have you guys found yourself in a situation where you validate other’s opinion over your
own? Because I have. I believe I’ve been doing this throughout my school life. Truthfully, I
suspect that I picked up this unwanted habit during my primary school where I’ve been way
too quiet and reserved.

However, as time progressed, I chose to ignore my personal preference or opinions and

instead focused on the life of others. I allowed my decisions to be changed because other
people thought so. Recently this year, I was rethinking my decision of choosing science
stream because of my other peers choice of choosing computer science stream. It’s
surprising to think that until that day, I was very confident in my choice to choose science
stream.

Later that day,, I went home and reflected on this in my journal. When I thought back about
it, I felt so embarrassed that I could be so easily persuaded. The very next day, I decided to
make a conscious effort on listening to my opinions and choices more. And yes, it wasn’t
easy. But I had to put in the effort. I also stuck quotes about prioritising self-opinion that I
found on Pinterest around my room. it was hard to break years of habit but hey, at least I’m
trying!

In conclusion, your opinion is a priority. It always has and always will be. Take time to think
about a decision. It’s okay to ask for other’s opinion when you need to decide, but you need
to make sure the decision is yours.