As the school year comes to a close, the fact that I'll be graduating from college soon has been settling in. "It's time to become an adult". So my first point of "adulting" was to take up the hobby of reading. My boyfriend bought me one of the books from the "You Are A Badass" series by Jen Sincero. It took me some time to get it started but it's been two weeks and I'm a little more than halfway through. Here are six things I have learned so far.
1. We all need a little help (or a lot).
But we have to want to be helped in order to receive help. We can't say "I hate this part of my life" and expect it to change unless we take action. The first step is allowing your heart to open up and let others help you make a positive change.
2. Surrounding yourself with great people is the most top-secret secret you need to know.
It's cool to know a lot of people but the five people you hang out with the most, tend to rub off on you. So choose your friends wisely. It may take some time to find those kickass friends, but it's important to start out by being THAT friend. If you're already that friend, say goodbye to the losers you hang out with because you deserve better.
3. Believing in yourself is scary.
GiphyReaching your full potential is scary. Sincero talks in depth about how we make up stories about our realities as a crutch/comfort/safety mechanism. We make up A LOT of excuses because gambling on ourselves is far scarier than "putting our lives in the hands of others". It's easier to blame others for our failures. It's easy to make excuses.
4. Affirmations are everything.
You are who you think you are. One of my recurring insecurities has been that I am "too much" and that I can't have all the things I want in life because that's just not how my life was set up for me. So, I've always restricted myself, and sometimes still do. I've toned down my personality over the years until I met the amazing people I have in my life now. So, I've been learning to undo the damage I've done on my soul. My new affirmation until further notice is "You are not too much and you can have anything you want."
5. I'm still learning.
Honestly, there is SO much value in this book. It should have come with a workbook. I'm also only 22 so I'm going to keep making mistakes and betting on myself is going to kickstart the slew of them. Everything is a journey and I'm finally learning that too.
6. This book was meant for the 30+ year olds.
If you're jaded in life this book is for you, but if you're young, like me, give this a read for a "wise beyond your years" feel. It can also help bring some guidance to your life as you enter "adulthood". There have been some chapters where I really felt like I could not relate, but tried my best to find something valuable in it.
I'm almost ready and completely terrified to bet on myself, but I feel like this is what I'm supposed to do. If you haven't started to read this book yet, I recommend you pick it up now.
