To My Younger Self

To my younger self...

It feels strange to write to you; I know you'll never read this. But I thought I would give you some advice that I have learned in my recently reached adult years.

First thing’s first: don’t lie. They always come back to you in the end. You don’t need to lie to impress people; leave your fun little stories for the paper. You’re intelligent and kind-hearted, and you put other people’s needs before your own. Sometimes that didn’t come through that often because you were too busy trying to impress people. You will impress people by being kind and being true to yourself and those around you.

Which brings this to our second point: stop worrying about what other people think of you. Someone will always have something negative to say about you. People will bully you for the sake of it; people will do everything they can to knock down your confidence, but there’s no need for you to let them. You will regret letting them get you down. You will hurt and damage yourself for it. Also, be open to your parents. If you aren’t happy, tell them. That’s what they are there for. They love you and want what’s only best for you. You can open up and talk to them, and they will do their best to come up with a solution. Hiding your pain from them will only make things worse.

Third, do not give up. Too many times you have started a project and quit because of your lack of motivation. You’re a talented writer which has gone to waste because you gave up. You have so many talents that you didn’t pursue because you gave up. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know the next sentence—that’s life. You will never know the next sentence or how it will impact you. But that doesn’t mean you should give up, or what’s the point in living?

Fourth, don’t dwell on mistakes you’ve made, or opportunities that you missed out on, or on things that you should have done but you didn’t. The past cannot be changed, no matter how much you want it to. You’ve hurt people, you’ve said things you didn’t mean, you’ve made bad decisions. Instead of dwelling on them, learn from them. Don’t let yourself be stuck in the past, or it will forever define you and will influence your future. Don’t take things to heart, either. You dwell on what people say and what they might say. Believe in yourself that you will make the best possible decision in that moment, and you will never have any regrets. Your best is good enough.

Finally, you will feel out of control, things won’t go your way and the future is always cloudy. People will hurt you and will continue to hurt you while playing the victim. You will look like the bad guy, and people will paint you out to be the bad guy. What I mean is, the world is full of hungry sharks that will try and rip you apart. There are surprise turns and difficult hurdles. You will never see what’s in front of you, even when things seem to be clearing up. Just remember to believe in yourself. Sometimes you will struggle getting out of bed in the morning, and sometimes you will completely lose focus. Just remember to do one thing a day that completely sucks; one thing a day that you hate doing. Exceed expectations and discipline your mind to resist negativity, to resist laziness, and to resist the feelings of giving up. If you learn to do this now, you will be grateful for it later—trust me.

You have so much promise for the future, so keep your chin up and don’t surrender to anybody, not even yourself. Be excited for the future, not scared.

Love,

Me