I see a lot of articles online that give life advice. Whether it's just advice on how to properly go to the bathroom or how to deal with a personal loss, there are so many stories floating around in the internet of the personal experiences people have had, and people use those stories to offer some sort of advice to anyone reading. It's a nice thing to do, writing about life, because everyone has one but it can be hard to live sometimes. Since I have very little world experience and no lessons of which to speak, those kinds of articles aren't really for me. Any life advice I give should be taken with a grain of salt. However, what I lack in my own life I tend to make up for in living through the escapades of fictional characters, which brings me to the topic of this article.

I've been rereading Game of Thrones recently. The books are long, there are a lot of them, and I want to refresh myself of the lore before the show begins again. Plus, the density of the books means that you're guaranteed to get new information from them every single read. One thing I've been noticing a lot more is that in the GoT universe, no one gives better life advice than Tyrion Lannister. Now it's not like this is new information. Tyrion is one of the most quotable characters in the series, and everyone who reads the books or watches the show knows that you'd be hard-pressed to find a more admirable human being in Westeros. He's not as despicable as the typical Westerosi, a lot more intelligent, and can take a joke better than anyone else. After all, he's usually the butt of them. So, without further ado, here are four nuggets of wisdom from Tyrion Lannister that really hit home.

1. Sharpen your mind

Everyone who's read/watched Game of Thrones has heard this before: "...a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge." Aside from his name and family, Tyrion has nothing to get him by in life save his mind. He doesn't have the beauty of his siblings (in the books at least; in the show, he's portrayed by Peter Dinklage) or the battle prowess of Hound. Aside from his name and family, Tyrion only has his mind to help him get by in the cutthroat game of thrones, so he spends much of his time reading books on history and ruling and other such subjects. And, well...he's not dead yet, so he must be doing something right. Of course, this is incredibly obvious to any college student; we need our minds to at least somewhat function if we're going to graduate.

2. Accept who you are

Here's another famous Tyrion quote: "Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armor yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you." People can get made fun of for literally anything. You can get mocked for how you look, what you wear, and inevitably, your tormenters are probably going to think up hurtful names. Tyrion knows this full well, ridiculed with monikers like 'Imp' and 'Halfman.' And although the instinct of most is to deny the hurtful words other throw at you, it only makes tormenters want to keep going; they want a reaction. No one wants to call someone 'ugly' and hear "yeah, I am!" It doesn't matter if you are or not, but laughing at the jokes of others and making fun of yourself is a great way to deal with mockery. I can't help but be reminded of how the LGBTQ community reclaimed the word 'queer,' which used to be an offensive term. By taking the words of others and using them as your own, they lose their original meaning. Anyone who's read Game of Thrones will hear the words' Imp' and 'Halfman' and think of Tyrion Lannister not as a joke, but as who he is: an intelligent, powerful, and resourceful man who...well, I don't want to spoil specifics, but let's just say he's done a lot worth cheering for. And besides, life is so much more bearable if you can laugh at yourself, and Tyrion enjoys a good laugh.

3. Show compassion

"...I have a tender spot in my heart for cripples and bastards and broken things." Do I need to say more? Tyrion is thought of as being all three of these things. Of course he'd care about the less fortunate, those mocked and stigmatized by others, and it's pretty obvious that people should strive to do that as well. I just thought Tyrion's words would be a lot more moving than mine, and they clearly are. If a guy like Tyrion can show compassion, anyone can. Because, let's be honest: his life is just as morally gray as that of any Game of Thrones character. You don't play the game of thrones and survive without being more than a little despicable.

Well, that's it! I'm not a fan of giving advice to people, but Tyrion Lannister is pretty great at it. These are three things that I felt were really meaningful as I read them over again, so I wanted to share. Again, it's nothing new, but some this are worth revisiting.