10 Valuable Tips People Would Give Their Younger Selves
Twenty seventeen says Rachana Chandrasekhar is a content writer at IncNut Digital. Of course, twenty twelve thought she'd be a vegetable vendor in an Italian countryside. Don't be too overwhelmed if t... more
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So you have spent a good, say, twenty something years of life already. Have you looked back and said to yourself, “I wish this hadn’t happened,””I wish just that one person hadn’t entered my life?” I am sure most of you 20-somethings must have said this to yourself at least once. Imagine what these ‘could haves’ and ‘should haves’ can pile up to, once you are 40 something? Read on to know what tips most people would like to give their younger selves to relive and make those lost moments just a bit more perfect, at least in their imaginations.
#1 To Learn A Skill/Art
Babyhood and early childhood are the best phases of life to pick up a skill or learn a language without making much effort. Of course, it is never too late to learn a sport or skill. However, the earlier you start, the more equipped you are to lead a life of content. It engages you productively and leaves less time to experience the crap that comes with growing. Plus, it prepares your mind to deal with tactful situations in life. Train your mind to learn a musical instrument or sport. It will heighten your ability of mental association and make you more creative, keeping your brain in good condition even in your old age.
#2 To Understand The Importance Of Education
Don’t get carried away by that sentence thinking that it is coming from some old-school writer who has led 60 years on this earth and is ready to die any moment. In fact, it is coming from a much younger person who feels everyone should UNDERSTAND the importance of education. Later, it is your take whether you want to go to grad school or not. Quite often than not, teenagers cannot see the bigger picture of life and make life-altering decisions. In retrospect, some are glad they took that step, and many regret it. However, understanding the dynamics is more important. Later, you have no one to blame. I keep saying, “I am whimsical. Whims are not planned.” But you’d rather say this after processing the big picture.
#3 To Stop Cribbing Over Just That One Percent
Teenage/youth is always about extremes. If one set wants to drop out of school, the other wants nothing less than a hundred percent. It is this art of balancing that you learn later in life after putting up with all the consequences of your excesses. One advice anyone would want to give to their younger selves and the younger generation as such is to take a chill pill about exams, projects, and assignments. No, that doesn’t mean you skip them. It just means that your academics are as important as everything else in your life.
#4 To Stop Thinking That Your Parents Are Heroes
Again, don’t judge the title without reading what I mean. As a child, you always think your parents are heroes and can do ANYTHING. Gradually, when the reality about their human attributes start dawning, you tend to become resentful, disappointed, and judgmental. You suddenly start hating everything they do. The idea that they could be wrong slowly transforms into they are wrong. It is only much later in life that you realize that your parents were actually Super Heroes and not just heroes who gave you everything they had in spite of their messed up adult lives.
#5 To Comprehend This Thing Called ‘Money’
Money is pretty much what the world wants today, wanted yesterday, and will want tomorrow. Without getting into the rights and wrongs about this attitude, let me tell you that money is more powerful than even women, power, and drugs. If you have mastered the knack of controlling what money can do to your life – good for you. If you allow money to master the controlling part, you will end up writing a whole list of what you should have done while you still had that kind of money and, more importantly, time. Whatever you spend on, good or bad, be conscious of it. And if you are still interested, learn early how to save or invest. Learning to start early is better than learning that shortcut.
#6 To Eat Right And Sleep When It Is Night
Yes, these are two areas where we abuse our bodies to the fullest. This is one sentence that comes from parents now and then, which, obviously, the rebel you will disregard, thinking it is too mainstream to eat lentils and sprouts and sleep at night. Although the idea behind asking you to eat right is not that you should eat a salad in place of cheese or sleep at nine in the night. The idea is to let you know what health means and how you will thank your younger self when you are 40 if you just are aware enough to maintain that balance between indulgence and deprivation.
#7 To Stop Jerking Tears For A Jerk
There are tons of teenage sagas of unrequited love. Although one of the most painful things in life is to love and not be loved back, realize that teenage is still too young for either of you to know fully well what you are getting yourselves into. A blow in this one zone is enough to cloud your opinion about life and existence. A better strategy would be to enjoy companionship, but not to the extent where you forget that your relationship is just one part of your existence. You’ve landed in this zone called togetherness – be glad if it works, and be super glad if it doesn’t.
#8 To Go Easy With Wanting To Try EVERYTHING ASAP
Your first cig, that first peg, or that first kiss – they are all thrilling not just at a young age but at ALL ages. The problem with your younger self is that it has too much time for faults, and that’s just the cushion that you fall back on. Although this is the thrill that gets you going in this otherwise mundane life, stop and ask why you want to do that and why now? If you are satisfied with these answers or, at least if, with conviction, you aren’t bothered about the answer, go for it! It is that one -second pause and these two answers that make all the difference!
#9 To Draw A Line When It Comes To Sacrificing
Not all have the privilege to make follies or indulge in extravagance. Nonetheless, you should realize that there is no point in sacrificing all your life. It becomes a habit, and you do it even when you don’t need to do it. It doesn’t make you the noblest person on earth to give all your cup cakes to your younger siblings or children. You will keep giving away all the cup cakes even when you can actually afford one for yourself. After years of denial, you will resort to blaming life for being unfair. Who started the game, though?
#10 To Ultimately Realize That It Is All Going To Be OKAY!
You have gone wrong in every possible way. You have done everything you shouldn’t have. You never saved money. You didn’t make it to the grad school. You cheated on people. Yes, sounds terrible, doesn’t it? Not actually. No matter what happens in life, there is still the chance for change, and there is still that chance for repair. This is definitely something I would like to tell my younger self – that nothing is ever over even probably after you are over. The essence is always there, always the same, and it is never too late to realize that.
Would you say any of the above things to your younger selves? Anything other than these? Feel free to post it in the comments section below.
