Feeling 22

I was up late one night because I drank 3 cups of coffee to make sure I stayed awake to drive for 6 hours straight. As I lay wide awake, I realized how soon my 22nd birthday was and reflected on how much I had learned in the past few years.

Do you ever feel like you have SO MUCH to share, but don’t want to come off like a weird wise sage to your friends? I guess that’s what Twitter is for but I also wanted to consolidate it into a Medium post.

In no particular order, here are my 10 lessons:

1. Time is valuable and how you spend it matters. What do you choose to prioritize?
2. Schedule in time for personal growth and learning outside of school! My favourite courses have been the Science of Wellbeing and CS50.
3. The actions we take now are investments we are making for our future selves.
4. Build meaningful and genuine relationships with people. Search for common ground — there’s always something to learn from others.
5. Use Google Calendar to organize your day and your tasks — also learn about Timeboxing!
6. Adding on #5: We can’t be “productive” every single day of our lives. Sometimes the most productive thing you can do for yourself is to relax.
7. Mistakes, failures, and “negative” experiences are just lessons learned.
8. Having a plan will give you a direction: be adamant in pursuing that goal, and be flexible to the curveballs that life will inevitably throw at you.
9. Know what you’re willing to struggle for (from Mark Manson). This is the most surefire way to grow and develop, and achieve something meaningful.
10. Be curious. Your creative pursuits are just as important, and yes — you can make time for it. (For example, photography is such a strong passion of mine and I love using it to showcase people and locations. It’s a great way to relax while knowing I’m investing in my happiness).

What important lesson have you learned that you would add to this list?

Captured the beautiful colours of Abraham Lake in Alberta!