We all receive advice: some amazing, some annoying, some awful, but some that change our lives. Here are 10 pieces of advice I received from friends, family, or TV/movies that I now live by and I hope inspires you.
1. "Pretty is as pretty does."
My mom learned this from my great grandma. It means that what makes you beautiful is more than your looks. Your actions are what make you beautiful.
2. "Life is hard."
My sister gave me this advice and yes I know that it's very simple and as college students, we say it a lot, but it's so true. Sometimes just acknowledging that it's difficult is helpful and it's a humbling realization when life doesn't go our way.
3. "Just because something is different than you thought, doesn't mean it is or will be bad."
My friend, Cindy, told me this. As a college student whose life has become a time of constant decision making and looking to the unexpected future, this rung true to me. Just because your job, date, interview, or party went differently than you expected, doesn't mean it was or will be bad.
4. "Just because you're pessimistic and see loss everywhere right now: It won't last forever."
My friend, Megan gave me this advice when I was going through a time of extreme loss and grief. We can get to a place in our life where we are pessimistic of good outcomes and see the inevitable loss in everything we do, but it's amazing to know that it won't last forever. Whether you are pessimistic about school, family, friends, or the future in general, you won't feel this way forever.
5. "Sometimes you just have to accept that things aren't in your control."
I found this advice to be profoundly humbling when watching one of my favorite TV shows. In this time of college, we are taught to control everything and that we have control. Unfortunately, we don't have control. I don't know what will happen next month or in 10 years from now, but all I can do is plan accordingly and be flexible if things don't pan out how I expected.
6. "God cares more about your heart than your ability to follow rules."
Last semester I was in a bible study called Mark Study. In this study, we focused on the book of Mark (in the new testament). Whether you believe in God/Jesus or not, I feel like there is a misconception that I had and probably others have that God is a God of consequences and rules. This taught me that he cares so much more about our heart and why we do things. I found this to be beautiful and an exciting thing to learn about God.
7. "It's ok to feel things and be who you are about them."
I read this quote in Perks of Being a Wallflower and immediately fell in love with it. We are taught that we are supposed to have fixed reactions to things or we shouldn't feel things because of other people. But feel how you feel because you're allowed to be who are. We all react differently and different things that hurt us.
8. "Don't doubt happiness or cut it short by worrying when it will end."
I tend to worry a lot about happiness which sounds weird but sometimes as a college student, you are worried all the time about deadlines and doing more, that when happy moments happen that make you forget about s
9. "Vulnerability is the courage to show up and be seen."
Brené Brown is this incredible sociologist that studies vulnerability. Sometimes you have so much work and other decisions to make that it's easier to avoid people and talk about superficial things. I challenge you to let people into your world because you deserve to be seen and to feel better.
10. "You have to hope for a life that is better than you can imagine."
In Stephanie May Wilson's book, "The Lipstick Gospel," she talks about believing in a life so good you wouldn't even be able to imagine it and I think this is so important because we can all get stuck in our right now and forget to hope for something better.
I hope you enjoyed the best pieces of advice I've ever received and they inspire you to realize that your existential crisis are normal.
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