On March 6, 2019, Elle Magazine released an article by Taylor Swift, titled "30 Things I Learned Before Turning 30."
Anyone who is familiar with Swift knows how much she has gone through since her country music start in 2006, and with the release of her perspective, multi-layered article, fans are able to further personalize with and to absorb experimental advice from Swift's journey as a young artist in the spotlight.
Although she gives a substantial amount of prominent advice, I am going to address her findings that, above all, stood out to me as a young adult woman.
Her first finding, learning to block out noise, is extremely relevant in today's society of media dominance. Too often, individuals, especially younger generations, allow social media to impact their emotion and how they see themselves when they look in the mirror. Swift's ultimate social media tip is to turn off the comments on your posts because, then, you don't have to rely on other individuals to validate your post or how you appear in your post. Be you. No apologies necessary.
Another finding that totally resonates with my life as a college student is Swift's third advice: trying and failing multiple times is exceptionally normal. She strongly advises taking risks, particularly at this young stage in life, because it is so imperative to continue searching and to progressively develop into adults. And what's a better way to grow than learning from past mistakes? This particular finding reminded me that even though college is the place to gather the knowledge to jumpstart a career, it's also a place to chase after exuberant opportunities and to make genuine memories with friends along the way. Time and time again, I catch myself diving completely into studying and homework that I forget to balance my schedule, both academically and socially, so this advice was a perfect reminder to live a little.
Finally, the last finding I found to be extremely prevalent in today's culture is Swift's fourteenth lesson: it's perfectly okay to not know what to say in an emotional situation, involving a friend. I have learned, especially since beginning college, that people are consistently dealing with a struggle, whether academically, socially, or personally, and the most critical thing you should do in any of those awful situations is to make sure you express to them that you are going to be there for them. She stresses her point that simply saying you're sorry is magnificently better than disappearing from their life. This finding alleviated any future stress I may have when I am trying to express empathy to a friend or family member because I now recognize that it doesn't matter what I say, it matters that I am there when they need it most.
I think it's safe to say that Swift is such a profound role model to me as a young woman, and I am always learning from her knowledge in the professional world and in my own personal life. I also encourage anyone who has not yet had the chance to read Swift's Elle article by clicking here and finding lessons from Swift that you personally relate to.
