As a 19-year-old who is 5'0", it can sometimes feel like I'm invisible. A lot of the time, it can be hard to be taken seriously. Specifically, it can be hard being a woman in business, considering it is such a male-dominated field. There were many times throughout my first semester at college when I wanted to give up and walk away, but there was always someone in my corner pushing me back into the fight: my dad. Growing up, I didn’t have much I could relate to my dad with. My dad is a big Italian guy who loves to play hockey, and I am a small blonde who looks more Irish than Italian. My sister looks just like him and played hockey as well, so I never really felt like I could connect with him the way my sister did. However, my dad always made sure I knew he was supporting me. He came to any game, musical, or event that I had and he always applauded me for keeping my grades up in school. I’ve known I needed my dad my entire life, but I never realized how badly I needed him until I got to college. The transition to college was not an easy one for me. I cried the entire time I moved in, but my dad never did. I’ve never seen him cry before. He always made sure to be the strong one in times of crisis, even when he should’ve been the one in distress. That day was no different. My dad was being strong for me because he knew I couldn’t be in that moment. There was a certain instance when I was having a tough time at school, and I woke up to a text from my dad that said, “Keep your chin up, kid. You are a warrior.” It was then that I realized that I would not know how to live without my father. He is the person on my shoulder pushing me to keep working hard every day. My dad is a big believer in tough love. He will never coddle you, instead, he will tell you to suck it up and walk it off. Many times, when I felt defeated because I wasn’t being taken seriously, my dad was the first person to jump in. He wouldn’t tell me that it was okay and it was no big deal, he’d say, “No daughter of mine will be put in the corner. Show them you deserve to be respected.” And that is exactly what I did. To put it simply, my dad is my hero. He taught me how to be strong and how to demand respect while being able to get along with people. If it weren’t for my father, I wouldn’t be the woman I am today.