This is my first blog post for English 101. I'm excited to be in this class because it is my first step toward getting a bachelor's degree in Social Work. I have been a full-time college student before, but I did not do well academically. The main problem was that I had difficulty writing papers. I think perfectionism was the root of the problem. I would constantly edit my compositions in my head so much that I stopped being able to write. Nothing was perfect enough to write down. I would feel more and more anxious the more I tried to write a paper, and eventually I would just give up.

Recently I feel a new sense of motivation to get a college degree. It is frustrating to try to find employment without a degree. It's difficult to find a job that feels satisfying, and actually it's just difficult to find a job at all. Not having a college degree also hurts my self-confidence, and I find self-confidence is very important when I'm job-searching.

I think this blog will be very helpful for getting past my anxiety about writing papers. I love writing letters, emails, and writing in my journal. I even love filling out forms. I am a natural writer in many ways. But the anxiety I feel when writing in a scholastic environment has stopped me from reaching my goals.

My biggest challenge with this blog is not to edit my writing. I think that is extremely important, but it is also extremely difficult for me! It has been a challenge to write this much. I have to constantly work to silence my inner critic so I can keep getting words out. Then I need to keep myself from going back and editing what I've written. I think that is incredibly important because until I can be comfortable with writing imperfectly, I will continue having extreme difficulty writing at all.