Dear young adult self:

Dear Young Adult Self:

Here is your top ten list of things to focus on from 40 year old me. Think of this as a bucket list before your actual bucket list. This is to broaden your horizons and make you more complete. You are a good and successful person but, looking back, there are things we should have worked on.

1.       Travel. Get out there and experience the world in its entirety. You have the rest of your life to work. To be married. To have children.

2.        Don’t be in a rush to do what you think others want you to do. Be yourself and don’t hesitate to speak your mind. People will not always want to listen and that’s okay too.

3.       Meet new people and engage.  Have that coffee with the classmate that makes you laugh. Go out with the person that makes you think beyond your natural scope.

4.       Test yourself. Get out of your comfort zone and try new things. Stop sitting on the sidelines waiting for something to happen. MAKE IT HAPPEN.

5.       Be happy with who you are. Every mistake you make will shape you today and that person is not so bad. Try not to wallow in your self-pity too long. Pick the pieces up, learn and move on.

6.       Forgive easily. Holding on to hurt and grudges only hinders you and no one else.

7.       Take the extra time with your loved ones and friends. Each day is not guaranteed and while you are at the age right now where you seem you will be here forever and that your family and friends will be there forever they will not.

8.       Further your education. Don’t stop at college. Keep going. You are worth it.

9.       Live by yourself. Be independent. We had a year of independence on our own and it was one of the best times of our life. We should have done it more.

10.   Trust yourself. It’s okay to second guess yourself but trust in you.

Sincerely: future Cheryl