Service
As an academic, I am required to do some service for my profession and for my university, college, school, and department. The amount of service required for a positive annual review, however, is pretty minimal. I make service a priority in my work because I am a person devoted to living an interdependent life. I enjoy serving on committees, taking on administrative duties, volunteering for campaigns, and so on because it makes me fully human and connects me to others. As Helen Keller said, "Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose." Service to my profession, my university/college/department, and to my community help bring me true happiness.