16 Things I Wish Someone Would Have
Told Me When I Turned 16
1)
Know and accept that you will make mistakes. The biggest mistake you can make is
doing nothing because you’re scared to make a mistake. Don’t hesitate and don’t
doubt yourself. It’s not about getting a
chance; it’s about taking a chance. You never know 100% if will work, but if
you do nothing, you know 100% that it won’t! If you don’t try, you won’t know,
and then you’ll always wonder.
2)
People cannot read your mind; tell
them what you’re thinking. People won’t know what you’re thinking unless you tell them. In friends,
in family, in work, we all have different perceptions, different perspectives
and different experiences. Communicate with everyone around you. Talk, listen,
understand.
3)
What other people think of you is
none of your business. No matter what you do or where you go, there will always be someone
waiting to judge or criticize you. Let them worry about them, and you worry
about you. (If you knew how little others thought about you, you wouldn’t worry
so much about what others think about you.)
4)
Ask as many questions as you can. It’s alright not to know all the
answers. Life is a constant, changing journey, and we learn from the people and
the environment around us. Don’t be afraid of someone thinking you are stupid,
and don’t make others feel stupid when they ask questions. (What other people
think of you is none of your business!)
5)
Live
within your means. Live comfortably, not hastily. Don’t spend money you don’t
have, and always have some money saved for a rainy day. Control your money; don’t let it control you.
6)
Live for today, plan for tomorrow. Make your time count. Don’t
disregard the future, and don’t forget about today. Set yourself up for an
enjoyable future, while still experiencing the things that make you happy
today. No matter what age you die, don’t
leave your life unlived.
7)
No one is in charge of your happiness
except for you. Period.
Figure out what makes you happy, and then figure out how to attain it. Every
once in a while, stop, reevaluate, and replan to ensure you are always on your
road to happiness.
8)
People are going to disappoint you. No matter how hard you try to
protect yourself from hurt, people you love and care about will hurt you. Hurt
lives rent-free in our heads and needlessly takes up space we could use for happiness.
Let go of those who hurt you continually or intentionally, and forgive those
who benefit your esteem much more than they hurt it.
9)
Be you. Be honest with yourself – you are
the only one who has to live with you for your entire life. Follow your heart
and be who you want to be. Out of all the billions of people born in the past
and all the billions of people yet to be born, you are the only person who ever
gets to be you. Don’t try to be somebody else. Embrace yourself, be proud of
yourself and live the life that no one else can.
10) Apologize when you should. Everyone makes mistakes, everyone
says things they didn’t mean, and everyone does things they wish they shouldn’t.
Not everyone apologizes when they were wrong. Be someone who does.
11) Smile. Have fun. You do not own all the problems of
the world. Stop worrying so much.
12) Make others feel good, love
unconditionally. Be
kind, for everyone is fighting their own battle. Do not judge people; you have
no idea what their journey has been. Give without expecting anything in return.
13) You teach people how to treat you. You do not have to accept people treating you poorly.
Respectfully and tactfully walk away from those who do so. Do not ever let
someone love you less than you love yourself.
14) Always be willing to give what you
ask to receive. Expect
from someone only what you are willing to give them yourself.
15) Every storm runs out of rain. Remember, it could always be better,
it could always be worse! “Bad” times help us appreciate the good times more. Time
heals almost everything; give it time.
16) Know that you matter. Know that you
are loved. You won’t
always know whose life you have touched, whose day you made, or who you made
smile, but you always matter to more people than you think, and you are always
loved by more people than you realize.
And #17, for when you turn 17:
17) Find hard work you love doing. Tell yourself not to pick a career
based on other people’s ideas or goals, or because it’s popular or makes you
lots of money; tell yourself to pick a career because it’s hard work you love
doing. Catch yourself working hard and loving every minute of it (or almost
every minute!). Hard work isn’t hard when you love what you do. Life is too
short to wake up every morning hating how you’re going to spend your day.
I love you always, Auntie Krystle
