You could be a senior in high school stressing to figure out what’s next. School or work? And what school or what work… or what do you even want to do with the rest of your life? Everyone expects you to know right away it seems like. Or maybe looking to transfer for your bachelors and do trying to figure out do you even need your bachelors? Or you could be completely finishing up school excited; yet scared because now it’s officially “the real world”. Where are you going to work and how much are you going to make? Why do people already expect you to be married and having kids with a well paying job?

I’m not trying to scare you, I’m saying I get it, we all do. I’ve been there in high school, I’m still their now graduating with my associates and wanting to transfer, and I will be there again when I look for a job. Don’t let people fool you, everyone goes through this. And yeah the big heavy life decisions do suck. They are hard, they are going to change your life forever, but it is something you have to do. So do your research and follow your heart. Don’t let family, friends, and relationship persuade you. Do the things you want to do.

Now I’m not telling you to drop everything and leave it behind. Don’t go ditching your family they are important and what will have your back when it seems like nothing else does. And I’m not telling you to quit your job and go spending all your money until your broke. So don’t go telling your parents a girl online told me to quit everything and leave to spend all my money, plus why would you listen to a stranger online for that… But you can listen to this:

Maybe you need to take a risk to keep going. Find a better job even if it means hard work and more hours, it will pay off. Join the club or team you’ve always wanted to, but were afraid of getting rejected or not having enough time. If you want to be a writer, then write a book. If you want to be an artist then go see museums or start trying to put your work into galleries. If you want to be an actor then maybe start a YouTube channel or go to an audition for something. If you have the time and money go an adventure, alone or with others, get to know yourself and the world around you.

I think you get my point, but basically don’t let the fear of failing stop you. Don’t think you have to know the answers to everything and have your whole life planned out. It just does not work that way; it will come eventually. Make the decisions you have to get by, to keep going, and let the rest fall into place. And trust me if you let it take the time it needs to while putting in the effort, it will probably be amazing in the long run.

Did you know, Oprah Winfrey used to have to wear potato sacks for clothing and was fired at her early jobs, now she is worth $3.1 billion and is doing so well people know her by a single name and not her full name. Jim Carrey was once booed off of stages. The king of rock and roll, Elvis Presley, was once told that he’d be better of being a truck driver than pursuing a music career. Babe Ruth not only held the record for 714 home runs, but before that he held the record for strikeouts, 1,330 to be exact.

Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard to start a business that failed. Walt Disney was once told that he “lacked imagination and had no good ideas” he then tried to start a business that put him in bankruptcy. Thomas Edison was told he was “too stupid to learn anything”, got fired from job after job, and created 1,000 failed attempts of a light bulb. And Stephen King received 30 rejections on his first book, he gave up and threw it literally in the trash, when his wife fished it out and told him just try one more time.

Let these people be an example for you, a reassurance. And I could go on and on in every single field. It does not matter who you are, what you are trying to do, if you just keep trying, keep pushing forward and you too can succeed. And that’s not going to come right away. You could be one of the lucky few that makes it successful young or you may be one of the people who have to work their whole life to get where they really want to get. Don’t let that stop you. Just give it one more chance, don’t listen to those around you, and don’t worry about having no money or not knowing what to do. Things will get better; they will get easier.

So good luck! I know you’ve got this and I’m sure you have a lot of support from others, but if you don’t you at least have me on your side. Maybe you just need to hear these words from someone to gain the confidence in yourself that you need to keep going. I hope when one door closes another always opens, I hope when you fall down you get back up, and I hope you find success one day. Set high goals and do what ever it takes to get there. You can do it.

Finally, don’t stress over success for the future. Because what does success even mean? The dictionary says “the accomplishment of an aim or purpose, the attainment of popularity or profit, or a person or thing that achieves desired aims or attains prosperity.” One person’s success could be money, while another’s could be happiness. Someone could be making $15 an hour and find that successful to him or her, while another could be making $100 an hour still doesn’t feel successful. Someone could see having a lot in their possession as successful while someone else could see having a lot of friends and family as successful. So find out what success means to you and strive for it. And once you get their, don’t stop, life doesn’t ever stop so why should you, keep pushing onward.