<< Inspired by Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton>>

1. You can spend hours, days, and months planning the perfect life. You can plan at what age you would like to graduate, when you would get married, how long it would take you to find your dream job, and around what time you would like to have children– that is, if you want to do those things. But the truth is, that you are counting on your life being fully under your control: this will destroy you. My dad once said, “think of this as block/categories that you need to fulfill. For as long as you have such a rigid plan for your life, if one of those fail, everything will fall after.” And it did. I learned not to plan ahead because life sometimes leads us down roads we never even considered.
2. Remember to say “thank you.” Remind those you love of how special they are; one day it will be too late.
3. I have spent most of my childhood years sitting at a desk studying. I always strived for perfection– in every sense. One day, you will not remember your life based on what grade you got on an English test, but the memories you made with your friends, family, and loved ones. Do not let any number define who you are.
4. We live in a world that constantly teaches us to be perfect. We spend years too focused on our bodies: the width of our waists, our weight, the frequency of our workouts, and our meals. I learned to think of my body not as the reason why I should be accepted and I realized that if I keep treating my body as means to gain acceptance, soon it will become that: just means to others’. One thought that helped is there is someone out there who would give everything to have your body (no matter how you feel about it). Be grateful.
5. Not everyone you love will love you back. It is not because you aren’t enough or because you did something wrong. Wait, only time will heal you and teach you why your past lover wasn’t meant to stay forever.
6. Guys will come and go, but friends are the ones that will stick with you for a lifetime. Invest your time and energy into those friendships that allow you to be yourself without fear.
7. Every single moment in which you were embarrassed about what you said or did at some point is only memorable to you. While you torture your mind with embarrassing things you did, most likely no one else remembers what you said at that double date or your first party.
8. Never give all of you to one person. Even if it feels like they will never leave you. If they ever do, you would have lost yourself in their absence.
9. As cliché as it sounds, learn to enjoy the little things in life. Life will never be all negative or all positive. Instead, you need to learn how to find the positive little things in a negative scenario and when your life feels unrealistically perfect, realize the small things you would like to change– it is key to learn how to live with the good and the bad.
10. Say “yes” to everything, or almost everything. In life, you will regret the chances you missed more than the things you did. Learn how to step out of your comfort zone. It helps to do that with someone you trust.
11. Say “no.” You need to learn to say “no” to people, ideas, things. Just because everyone else is doing or thinking something, it doesn’t mean you have to follow them. Your values should never change depending on your company.
12. Small progress is still progress.
13. Everyone says this but it took me a while to finally learn it– the way you love yourself is how you teach others to love you. Once you know your worth, you won’t settle for someone who diminishes your value. If you love others before you learn to love yourself, those relationships will be built around the wrong foundations.
14. It is ok and absolutely necessary to be sad at times. Do not force yourself to be constantly happy regardless of your issues. Face them so you can move on and learn from them.
15. Dream big– but never set a time frame for those dreams.
16. If you want something badly enough, you will make it happen as long as you put your effort and your heart into it.
17. Learn how to be by yourself. Learn to do things that allow you to connect with your emotions and not feel lonely in a world where we are often pushed into the crowd.
18. People will always find something negative to say about you, so stop worrying. Even if you try your hardest, you will never please them. So, try to do what makes you happy regardless of others’ opinions.
19. Never compromise your values or ideals for someone else.
20. Some people, no matter how much we love them, only come into our lives to teach something about life, love, or even ourselves. This applies to any kind of relationship: romantic, familiar, friendships. You will mourn their absence, but once you are done mourning, try to understand the lessons they left behind.
21. Everything happens for a reason even if we cannot understand the why right away.