21 Years of Lessons Learned
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My 21 Years Of Lessons Learned

It's my birthday! It's been quite a journey, I honestly do not know how I've made it to 21. I thought I'd share some words of wisdom that I've learned in these 21 years, that can hopefully help someone out.

SamiNichole
Nov 07, 2018
Texas A&M University
10
My 21 Years Of Lessons Learned
Sami Hernandez

21 pieces of advice for all of my years:

1. It's okay to not know what you want to do with the rest of your life in high school.

I thought I had to have my life figured out before going to college. Pick the school, pick the major, pick the career, all before college. To this day, I've changed my major twice and changed what I want to become at least four times. There are four years of college for a reason.

2. It is okay to mess up.

Oh, boy. I've messed up so many times. Whether it be saying the wrong thing, forgetting to do something, or just putting off a project until the day before it's due to do it. I've done it all, and that's okay, I'm still learning.

3. Failing is one step closer to success

I would always strive to be perfect and when failure struck or something didn't go the way I planned it, my world fell apart. Now I've learned that there's beauty in failure and it only helps me grow.

4. My BFF is high school isn't my BFF now. 

When people told me that the people I was close to in high school would be nothing but a memory in college they're not wrong. Even my best friend in high school and I stopped talking. And it's okay, because we grew up, and grew apart.

5. Not everyone is going to like me.

This one was hard for me to accept. I tried to hard so that everyone would like me. It was beginning to take a toll on me to the point that I wasn't myself. I've just learned to understand that I won't always be someone's cup of tea be it something small like the way I smile or the way I laugh.

6. I'm not always going to see eye to eye with others.

People can be brutal and I don't understand why they do certain things. It began to make me an angry person, until I learned that there are some people who I will never be able to understand or be compatible with, so keep them at a distance.

7. Not everyone feels/cares as strongly as I do.

If I could write this one over and over again, I would. I tried the whole, "try not to feel emotion" and playing the who can care less game, I always lose. Caring and feeling for others is the best aspect of myself but also my biggest flaw.

8. The people that I thought would always be there for me, don't even talk to me anymore.

Sure people grow apart, and that's understandable. But when people cut me out of their life just because of a relationship or because their friends may not like me? Still hurt.

9. There's a difference between a friend and an acquaintance.

Not everyone I've met has become my friend. It's rare for me to have people in my life that I consider as friends. An acquaintance is my lab partner, a person I've met in class and exchange numbers with, never really speaking to them after the semester is over. A friend checks up on me and I check up on them every week or so because we both know how crazy our schedules are and I can talk to them like nothing has changed.

10. I will not always make the right choice.

And I've learned from the wrong choices. Yes, I've gotten hurt. But at least I'm not left with that 'what if.'

11. Life's too short to live with regrets.

At one point in my life, the choice I made, was one that I wanted to make. So why regret it? It happened, it's in the past. I learned from it.

12. Prioritize myself. 

I'm a people pleaser and I tend to put others before myself. Always doing things for others, before I ever do anything for myself. But then I began to lose sleep and find myself unhappy. Not pleasing someone is scary, but losing myself was scarier.

13. Always remember that I'm worth it.

There have been many instances where I don't understand why I'm here or if there's something wrong with me. But I just have to remind myself that I'm put in this position for a reason and I'm strong enough to handle it.

14. Heartbreak changed me.

Although I'm afraid of loving and being loved again, heartbreak taught me to let few in and to love them unconditionally.

15. Build my walls up high.

Not everyone is my friend. Some follow the 'keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.' I have to watch for those because, in the end, all I have is myself.

16. Only really trust a few people.

Those who want to be around me, be my friend, be someone I confide in, will make an effort to be in my life. They'll show me they're worth the effort.

17. Don't compare myself to others.

This was hard to accept since it became a habit. But there will always be someone prettier, someone skinnier, someone funnier. The only person I can compare myself to is the person I was the day before.

18. There's always sunshine peaking through the clouds.

A bad day happens every so often, but I can't make it a bad day because one bad thing happen. That can't put a damper on my whole day because I never know if there will be something beautiful at the end of the day.

19. Don't try to convince myself that I'm not feeling what I am really feeling.

I went through a time when I tried to convince myself that I wasn't hurt and upset, I was just overreacting. So I just tried to put those feelings to the back, until they came out all at once causing them to hurt even more than they had before.

20. People come and go like seasons.

I try to think highly of everyone. Even when they do me wrong. I try to give them second, third, fourth, fifth, so many chances but I always am the one that ends up getting hurt. I can only try for so long, but one day, I let them go, and as much as it hurts, it's way better than continuously getting stepped on.

21. I'm only given one life, so I must make the best out of it.

I'm only twenty-one. I still have so much to learn. Might as well take in everything now, love profoundly, and be grateful I made it this far. Here's to twenty-fun.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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