On my first day as CEO/President of Loretto, I walked into my corner office, full of executive accouterments and the best view the building could offer and began serving as the head of a multi-million-dollar corporation. What more could you want, right? A casual observer would think I was lucky to have such an opportunity. But the reality is, luck had nothing to do with it – hard work did.

You see, my time at Loretto didn’t just appear – it came as a result of a long – often arduous – journey I was on. That journey began all the way back in my childhood, and it’s made up of all sorts of positive experiences, personal and professional accomplishments – as well as bad habits, old traumas, and negative interactions. That’s right – my story includes the good, the bad and the ugly.

Too often, we’re tempted to ignore the past and focus on the present and future – I’m certainly guilty of it. But it’s important not to let that silent lineage disappear from our minds. As Bergen Baldwin Evans wrote (more commonly known from the film, Magnolia), “We may be through with the past, but the past is not through with us.” In other words – your past will affect your present and future – if you ignore that, it could be detrimental to your success. It’s important to be self-aware of the experiences that have shaped you from childhood to today.

My story – a story no one else can claim. There’s something powerful about owning your story – the assembly of all of those cobbled-together parts that got you where you are today and will take you to your future. Every single one of us is a product of hundreds and thousands of life experiences that started at the beginning.

When’s the last time you reminisced about your story – the accomplishments and the challenges, where you’ve been and where you want to be? As Valentine’s Day approaches, it’s the perfect time to reflect on and fall in love with your story – after all, it’s something that is uniquely yours – and it will be with you forever.