A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Be brave.
—Lao Tzu

Heading back to school—whether it’s back to campus or back in the classroom—often comes with mixed emotions. You might feel excited—and ready—to see your friends and classmates again; while you might also feel anxious about reopening last semester’s academic and social issues.

No matter what’s on your mind, you deserve a clean slate this January. It’s common for people to experience fears and anxieties, negative feelings and emotions, and to feel overwhelmed and stressed, but don’t fret, you can tackle these feelings head on. Here are three tips to help:

  • Take action. Stressful situations affect all of us from time to time, yet these challenges do not need to hold us back. Choose to start the year by bravely taking action and confronting stressors directly as they arise.
  • Find your unique strengths. Being conscious of who you are, being true to yourself, and acknowledging your assets and abilities takes a lot of the uncertainty out of life. Harness your own personal power to wrestle with whatever stressors are getting in the way of your progress.
  • Give yourself a thumbs-up daily. Deliberately choose to be brave in confronting challenges every day. Give yourself a mental thumbs-up every time you do!

And don’t forget, there are supports out there, ready to help you—the Steve Fund is one of them—if any of the challenges you are confronting seem too big to face alone.

On behalf of everyone at the Steve Fund, I want to wish you a happy new year, and encourage you to get excited about setting some goals that matter to you. And don’t be surprised if you exceed your own expectations in 2019!

Be well,


Anuja Khemka
Executive Director