Today’s post is dedicated to Ellen, my beautiful little soul sister who lives in No. 17!
Looking back ten years gives you an insane amount of perspective into your own life, so I wanted to share some of these wisdoms of life that I have garnered since my 19th year and wish I had been aware of back then. Though to be honest I do wonder if I would had taken my own advice ….. being a stubborn little Leo I may have just wanted to find out for myself!
1. You are already AMAZING! Even if you don’t know it yet, just trust me when I say that you are already the most awesome 19 year old you could possibly be. Don’t be anyone different than who you are. You are unique and special and talented and fascinating and one day you will look back and see just how much you rocked! Never listen to other’s criticisms and trust yourself even when you’re out on a ledge trying something new.
2. Develop your own style rather than copying others. Figure out what looks you love to rock regardless of what everyone else is wearing. This will change over time anyway so it doesn’t matter. Be playful and have fun with it. You might just start a trend!
3. There’s plenty of time for everything. I know life seems so exciting and pertinent right now but don’t rush it. Everything always happens at exactly the right time. Enjoy everything for what it is no matter how incomplete or weird or crazy it may seem right now. You will look back at the experience with a whole new sense of understanding one day.
4. Don’t take yourself or anyone else too seriously. No one really knows what’s going on any better than you do. Life is a fun game in which you can make and break the rules and everyone is just figuring it out as they go along. Remember that just because something is right for one person doesn’t mean that it is right for you too. Check in with yourself from time to time to make sure you’re following your own heart.
5. It’s super okay to make mistakes. In fact it’s better to make lots of mistakes now and learn and grow from them than not to and to stagnate and build up fears and barriers because you are afraid to take a wrong step. Make mistakes and move on. Don’t let the fear catch up with you, just keep moving forward. Eventually you will realise that the mistake you made wasn’t such a big deal after all. Be fearless. Take risks.
6. There’s plenty of boys in the world to play with so don’t rush into things with anyone unless you feel that they are the sweetest, cutest boy you could be with right now. Boys will come and go throughout your life, so there is no need hold on to every single whisper du l’amore that passes a guy’s lips. There’s plenty more where that came from. And when it’s honest and sincere you will feel it. The one for you will come. In the meantime, enjoy, play and have fun.
7. Actions speak louder than words. Always judge a person by what the DO and not by what they SAY. Words may drip sweetly like honey but if they are not followed up through action they are meaningless and can lead to disappointment and heartache.
8. Keep the promises you make to yourself. This is an excellent way to develop your trust and self-respect. If you can’t keep the commitments you make for yourself, how can you expect others to do it for you? We all lead by example and teach people how we want to be treated by how we treat ourselves.
9. Hone and listen to your intuition. If something just doesn’t feel right it probably isn’t. Even if you can’t explain it. This has been proven true for me countless number of times, if you don’t listen you pay with a lesson that could have been avoided.
10. Have fun! As much as you possibly can! You will never be 19 again and with time your preferences and interests will change as you evolve and you may never get a chance to experience these things that you are currently doing again. Life is for living so get out there and create some memorable experiences. Preferably ones that you can entertain your children and grandchildren with at bedtime as they stare at you with wide-eyed wonder!
11. Don’t think that you’ve got to have it all figured out yet. Because you don’t. We all develop in our own time and have to follow our own unique path. Just like in The Sunscreen Song (below) “Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don’t.”
12. Be what you seek. Everything you experience in your life is a reflection of yourself. I know this is a big concept to grasp but it works like this. If you want something be it. Do it. Say it. You want others to say you are beautiful then tell yourself that you are beautiful, treat yourself as if you are beautiful and the compliments will start pouring in. You want to be the best at something then start acting like you are. How would you be different right now if you were the best at what you do?
13. Others can only love you as much as you love yourself. You set the bar. So start loving yourself RIGHT NOW! Gala Darling has an amazing post titled 100 Ways You Can Start Loving Yourself Right Now. Read it!
14. Dream big. Be wild. Be free. Be you.
15. Believe in yourself. Believe that you are good enough to achieve, do and be anything you dream of. The sky is the limit and as buddha says “What you are is what you have been. What you’ll be is what you do now”. It will pay off one day in the future.
16. Be experimental. Try new things. Everyone’s experience is different and can be greatly skewed by their own biases. The amount of times that people have warned me not to try certain things and I have done so anyway and come out with an experience completely different from theirs and deeply gratifying is mystifying! If there is something you want to do, then do it and remember that other people aren’t always right.
17. Be smart. Keep your wits about you. Stay sharp and clear.
18. Practise really does make perfect. It’s in the showing up and doing those things again and again and again that the magic happens. Develop your strengths and one day you will be the one everyone is looking at and wondering how you made it to the top. Superstars aren’t born overnight, they grow from the bottom up just like everyone else.
19. You are loved. You are safe. You are taken care of. Even in your darkest and loneliest moments you are never alone. Remember that always!
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Image source.