1. You and the boy that you fell in love with in high school may not work out, and that's OK.
I know what you're thinking, "you're nothing without them, you don't know what to do without them, and you thought that they were the one!" I promise you life goes on and you will be fine. There are some couples who have been married for 10-15 years that have gotten a divorce. Couples who have bought a house together, exchanged wedding vows with one another, traveled together, had kids together, raised a family together; they've gotten a divorce after sharing a life together for 10-15 years, yet they're still moving forward with their lives. So why can't you?
2. You might fall in and out of love with your major.
You're going to take classes that you might not like, some classes may even be harder than others, and sometimes, you will question whether or not your major is right for you. It's OK to change your major, and it's OK to struggle with it sometimes. As long as it makes you happy in the long run, that's all that truly matters.
3. We all make mistakes and have our embarrassing moments, learn to laugh at them and own them instead of being afraid of them.
I tripped and rolled down the hill in front of Sigma Nu as all the guys were sitting outside, and I accidentally went to a Spanish Two class on the first day of school--as a Sophomore. It happens. Own it, embrace it. But guess what, I didn't get a single scrape or bruise from taking that tumble, and I made it to the class that I was supposed to be in with one minute to spare.
4. Boys suck, but they can teach you a lot about life.
You're going to meet plenty of guys in college and yes, you may get played. Brett from Sigma Apple Pie may not text you back, and you may get your heart broken because you saw Brett with another girl at Sigma Apple Pie's Jersey function; but sometimes that can cause you to push yourself to aspire to bigger things. To grow and change, and to realize that you deserve so much better. Because there's nothing better than focusing all your attention on you and keeping your heart closed for a little bit in order to figure out what it is that you really need in your life.
5. You have to unbecome who you are in order to become who you're supposed to be.
You may realize that your major just doesn't interest you like it used to, that going out just isn't your thing anymore, you might wanna be friends with new people, and that life plan that you had all set for yourself may sound silly after a few months. No one at the age of 25 is the same person they were at 19, so don't ever feel guilty or be afraid to embrace little changes in your life.
6. Things take time.
Whether it be creating friendships, falling in love with your school, getting used to being away from home, learning where everything is or figuring out which major is right for you. Not everything happens over night and you won't have everything figured out right away, just be patient and everything will fall into place.
7. Having four Quarters is way better than having 100 Pennies.
You might have a lot of friends who you give so much loyalty, reliability, and effort to, and all you get in return is nothing. Yes, having a lot of friends is nice, but if they don't treat you the way that you deserve, then they're not really true friends. Don't be afraid to give your time to those select few people who have always shown you they cared, even if you failed to recognize it at times. Because those girls will be the ones who will make you laugh your hardest, make you smile the biggest even on your bad days, and who you'll thank God a little bit more for at the end of each day.
8. Take the advice that your parents give you into strong consideration.
Your parents have been around the block, and they've made the same mistakes you have. So when they give you advice on what you should do, take my advice now and listen to them. Like when they tell you that you should get your flu shot so you don't get sick or how to spend your money wisely, or how you shouldn't take a boat load of courses and stress yourself out, or that you should check your oil before taking a 13 hour road trip with your friends; because newsflash, you will get sick, you will be asking them for money quite often, you will stress yourself out, and you will be halfway to your destination, in the middle of nowhere, and have to pull over because your car ran out of oil.
9. Take responsibility for your actions and for your choices.
That teacher didn't fail you because he hates you, he failed you because you barely show up to class, you rarely study for his tests, and everything you turn into him is below average work. Life's hard and not everything's gonna be fair, that's just the way it is; but what matters is how you accept it, take responsibility for your actions and their outcomes, and move on from them.
10. No one else knows what they're doing either.
There are times when you will be scared, we're all scared, but that's the point. It's supposed to scare you because that means that it's important, and that means that it matters. You're not gonna like your major sometimes, heck, you might even change it. You're not gonna love every single class you take, you're not gonna know everyone, you're gonna be stressed out sometimes, you're not gonna know how to do some things on your own, and you might not know where you want to end up after college. You're not gonna always know what to do, but the thing is, none of us really do--we're all out here winging it together. But what matters is doing what makes you happy because a big part of life isn't always about having what you need, it's having what you want; having the life you want. And in college there's no right or wrong way of getting there, but there are good and bad ways. So as you go into college, do what you want, major in what you want, and if you don't know what that is yet it's OK cause you'll figure it out. Pick the friends you want, and choose the life you want, because really, that's all that the next four years are really about.
