A Word from the Wise - Fardowsa Dahir

March 8, 2021

What is the best piece of advice a mentor or mentor figure has given you? How has this advice impacted your life, decisions, and/or goals?

The age difference between me and my oldest sister is nearly a decade. For years, I took this for granted. That me and the third-born made up a younger unit and our two oldest sisters made up their own. As I’ve grown older, I’ve come to appreciate the fact that I was born into a family of friends, trailblazers, cheerleaders and mentors. Better than any words they could string together, their example was eloquence in motion. They taught me to be fearless in my ambition, dedicated to the causes that move my heart, and to hunker down and do the hard work even when I didn’t feel like it.

What is one of your biggest lessons learned since becoming a student at OSU? What is one piece of advice you would give incoming buckeyes?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned at Ohio State is that there are endless paths to choose from, but that the most successful people are the ones that follow their internal compass. Sometimes it’s hard to hear ourselves over all the noise. The best piece of advice I can give is to embrace that noise. Try everything that moves you, and it will lead you to your inevitable path.