Edc510 B Autobiographical Paper

Gracie A Owens

Autobiographical Statement

EDC 510 B

North Carolina State University

July 10, 2017

        I made the decision to become a counselor after being counseled for numerous problems I have suffered over the years.  I have survived many difficult life lessons through counseling, loving friends, and a supportive family.  The help I received made me start thinking of what I could do with my life to help others with similar or the same problems.  I am still not sure which path I want to travel in counseling.  I have thought of drug and alcohol counseling, abuse counseling, family counseling or education counseling.  For right now I plan to learn more about what it takes to be a good counselor and adjust my career path accordingly in the future.

        To become a competent counselor, I think I must be willing to learn from my colleagues and benefit from their past experiences with clients. I think to become a good counselor I will need to recognize when a case is out of my scope of knowledge and expertise.  I think a good counselor should be able to accept constructive criticism and understand no one counselor has all the right answers or skills to help a client.

        I think the fact that I am always looking for answers and willing to research cases long after others go home will make me more efficient than most. I know that I  have limitations in my abilities which will force me to use all resources at my disposal to include my family, friends, and co workers to help me become great at my job.  I am trying to become a counselor to become famous or wealthy.  I am doing this because I honestly feel my unique gift is listening to others and giving advice they may not necessarily want to hear but need to hear. I want to let my clients know there is hope when the skies are darkest, and they feel the storm pounding hard upon their head.  I am a survivor, and they can be as well if they take the necessary steps to overcome what burdens them the most and causes despair in their lives.

        I think I am flexible being that I can see the glass half full or half empty. I am also very in touch with my emotions.  I can empathize and sympathized while remaining impartial and nonjudgmental.

        I do not possess any skills gained through formal training in counseling, so I am going to benefit tremendously from the NCSU graduate counseling program.  I have life skills. As a graduate student in counseling, I hope to gain confidence in public speaking so that I may communicate more efficiently in group settings.  

        Over the years I have come in contact with many different people from all walks of life.  I  was a magnet for girl chats in a dorm room from people I encountered.  I have maintained long and lasting relationships with people both in my professional and personal life.  I am still close to the first little girl I met the day I  moved to Clinton NC, and I am always getting messages from individuals who served in one of my units while in the US Army. I have a long history of lasting, fulfilling, and mutually beneficial relationships.