Environment is everything. It impacts how we feel, the way we work, and even how productive we are. I've learned this the hard way: from a series of less than ideal living situations that negatively affected me in many ways, only to make me appreciate my current environment that much more. 

Let me take you back. After graduating from high school, I moved to the Twin Cities to attend a private college. Even though my roommates were amazing, living in such close quarters with 3 other girls in a big city, which has never been my thing anyway, was pretty terrible. Then I transferred schools and moved in with my boyfriend and his parents. He traveled most of the year, so at the time, it didn't make sense to pay on his own place when he was hardly there. Again, his parents were great, but that's no one's ideal situation. Next came a rental that was always meant to be short-term, even though it ended up being longer-term than we had planned. The common denominator with all these places? I co...