Every step in my life has been important to me because it will help determine the future that awaits me at the end of my journey. Choosing a theoretical orientation is an important decision for me as a graduate student working to become a licensed professional counselor. After being introduced to different theoretical orientations, it was difficult to make a final decision on which one to choose because everyone had ideas that I agreed with. Reading these theories I realize that many of them had views that I agree with or believe in, which made it more difficult to choose a specific one. Initially, Person Centered by Carl Rogers caught my attention with his perspective and the way he developed the theory. He believed that no one was born to be sneaky towards others and I agree with him (Rogers, 1961). I believe that no one is born with the intent to hurt others, but certain experiences that individuals have had throughout their lives can lead them to harm others. I once saw a photo illustrating a white child on a bus touching the hand of a black male sitting next to his mother. The mother appeared to have a disgusted expression as she looked away avoiding eye contact with the man. The image said, “no one is born racist” and in that moment I thought about the importance of what children are exposed to every day and the importance of what parents teach their children about life. Holdstock & Rogers (1977) state that each individual is biologically and psychologically unique, which helps each person experience their environment in their own distinctive way. I agree that each person is unique in their own way, but ultimately each individual chooses to be different from others until... middle of paper... in my reality. Works Cited Gladding, S.T. (2013). Counseling for a Comprehensive Profession (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.Hill, C.E. (2009) Helping Skills: Facilitation, Exploration, Intuition, and Action (3rd edition). Washington DC: American Psychological Association Holdstock, T. L., & Rogers, C. R. (1977). Person-centered theory. In R. J. Corsini (Ed.), Current Personality Theories (pp. 125-152). Itasca, IL: Peacock. Rogers, C. R. (1961). The therapist's perspective on psychotherapy. On becoming a person. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Rogers, C. R. (1979). The foundations of the person-centered approach. Education, 100(2), 98. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=4727029&site=ehost-liveSharf, R. S. (2008). Theories of psychotherapy and counseling: Counseling and cases (5th edition). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole