I am honored to stand here, and to take this wonderful chance to communicate with new people through my voice. I spent days and days agonizing about what to talk about at this moment. Am I qualified enough to talk about others' happiness? Can I actually define what happiness is? I'm afraid I have to say no. But fortunately, I am one who lives for happiness, who has thought that I, myself, am one of the happiest persons in the world. Why do I consider myself a happy person? If I tell you how I got to be happy, then all of you can be happy, just like me. It is really simple and easy. There are only three points to consider! One, BE YOURSELF, two, KNOW YOURSELF, and three, LOVE YOURSELF.

 

The first step to be happy is to BE YOURSELF. I was fortunate to have been born in a good family. Not from a good family of wealth, but of freedom. Rather than attending private academies, my parents took me to the library to read books, and also spent every night discussing my concerns together. But there was one time in my life when I lost freedom. In my last year in high school, I had to throw my real self away. My parents wanted me to prepare to enter a top college in Korea. I was too young at that time, just a teenage girl scared of disappointing my parents. I had no courage to fight all the expectations of me, and stand alone in this difficult world. So I had to throw my real self away and comply. Consequently, I did enter Korea University, one of the top universities in Korea. But apart from the output, those hard days taught me a very important thing. To be happy, BE MYSELF. Because I have spent so many days fulfilling others expectations of me, I figured out it is necessary to free myself from external factors. Live every moment with ownership. Don't let others take control over your life.

 

Another important step towards happiness is to KNOW YOURSELF. Knowing the importance of being myself, I kept on forging my own path, which was in many ways different from others. Every day I met people—friends, family, professors, friends of friends', and even totally new strangers. I went on a trip every vacation to meet new people. I concentrated on marketing projects, application creation projects, international conferences and other activities in which I could interact with various people. I didn't have much time to sleep, my body was exhausted, but I was so happy. Questioning myself for days and days, I have found out that all the reasons for my behavior and actions can be narrowed down to one keyword regarding happiness, that is, “communication”. I love to communicate with others so that was the reason why I was happy to get to know more people through school activities, competitions, conferences, and trips. Once I got to know one part of myself, I then could find out what to do and what would be the best for me. Keep telling yourself to KNOW YOURSELF. 

 

The last step to happiness is LOVE YOURSELF. Believe in yourself, love what you do, and let others love you. This, loving myself, is a kind of a magic spell I cast over myself. Recently I have decided to take interdisciplinary courses in Software Engineering and Enterprise. It was a tough decision for me to make because the field was totally new to me and it required me to attend two more years of college. But I managed to take the courses and I am happy that I have chosen to take this adventure. Just by believing in me, I do not have any regrets. Also, if I respect myself, then it is shown as confidence to others. Another good way to recognize happiness is to let others speak out to your confidence and happiness. LOVE YOURSELF to keep your happiness with you. 

 

We live only one life. And this situation, this chance, this time, this moment will never come back. That is why it is never enough to live every moment happily. Never let others take over your life. BE YOURSELF. Find out what you really love and why. KNOW YOURSELF. And LOVE YOURSELF so that others can love you too. There is a quote from Aristotle that says “Happiness depends upon ourselves”. Always yearn for happiness and live for happiness. 

 

Thank you very much.