I won’t lie to you: I have no idea what to expect out of 2017. Last year is going down as an absolute disaster for pretty much everyone, and with an untested President about to lead us through an already unsteady future, it’s easy to let anxiety and doubt cloud your vision of your future self. Regardless of what’s to come, we still have jobs to do, degrees to earn, families to raise, and lives to live. In times like these, positive thinking is often the best start to solving our problems. Here are some of my favorite quotes from literature to help you stay focused on your future and explanations to apply them better in life.

“Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. On the outside, babies, you’ve got a hundred years here. There’s only one rule that I know of, babies — 'God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.'”
– Kurt Vonnegut, God Bless You, Mrs. Rosewater

One of my all-time favorite authors, Vonnegut is a master of simplifying even the strangest things into terms even babies can understand. In this case, we’re all babies in a way – children of the earth doing their best to grow up. Every day we have to navigate through life, unfamiliar territory that often scares and confuses us. Life is challenging enough, and letting fear stand in the way of understanding each other solves nothing. If you have a project to do, collaborate with some classmates and pool your talents together. If your teammate is struggling with a paper, offer to help them out or proofread it. We’re social creatures; it’s in our biology to benefit from one another. Be kind, be helpful, and success will find you.

"Beware; for I am fearless. And therefore powerful."
– Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

Mary Shelley was the daughter of two revolutionaries. She saw firsthand how fear can turn people against each other and lose their humanity in favor of security. As scary as the future may seem, there’s really no good that can come from worrying about it. Allowing your doubts and anxieties to consume you is the fastest way to lose your momentum in reaching your goals. Be confident in yourself, your plans, and your ability to make them real. Be unafraid of what makes you feel doubtful or inadequate about where you are in life. Find your power in each and every accomplishment you cross off your list on your journey to happiness.

“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.”
– Maya Angelou, Letter to My Daughter

If there’s anyone who knew what it means to overcome their obstacles, it’s Maya Angelou. She became one of the most prominent writers in America during a time where the Civil Rights Movement was a very radical concept. As a result of her gender and race, she endured brutal hardships that most Americans did not, yet she overcame them and found success in a country where millions wanted her to fail. Whatever your situation in life may be, whatever your hopes and dreams and aspirations are, you will overcome if you fight for your future. Every harsh word and broken heart you’ve ever endured only makes you stronger. Doubt, however, is your worst enemy. Don’t let it win.

“Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.”
– Shel Silverstein, “Listen to the Musn’ts”

Shel Silverstein is far and away one of the most creative children’s authors of the twentieth century, yet his words still ring true to the adults who grew up

reading him. From every direction we hear negativity – scary statistics about your chances of getting into your dream grad school, family members who want us to find “realistic” careers instead of pursuing our dreams, headlines that claim that this time it’s the end of the world. Often this all fills your headspace with dead weight that makes you worry and wonder about the future. But if there’s anything good to come out of the bizarre tire fire of a year called 2016, it’s that anything – especially good things – can happen. Do you remember that hopeful, boundless, worry-free feeling you had when you were a kid when someone asked you “what do you want to be when you grow up?” Believe it or not, that’s still inside you. Tap into it and run with it.

We live in uncertain times, to say the least. The world can be an intimidating, brutal place, and it’s a challenge to resist dwelling on the worst of our problems. President Trump’s inauguration is a strange and foreboding one for millions of Americans, budget cuts for higher education are startling many of us still in school, and an overall lack of job prospects can be incredibly discouraging. But it’s important to remember that even with as uncertain your situation may seem, there are worse times and places in the world to be when dealing with it.

Mathematically-gifted Black women helped land Americans on the moon just five years after segregation ended. College dropouts can start multimillion dollar companies in their garages. Millennials are now the largest voting bloc in the nation. We are pioneers, problem-solvers, explorers of the unknown. As Americans we seize opportunities and run with them despite our fears and obstacles. Things are scary now, no question, but you and me and millions of others are in a unique position in history. Right now we can choose either to press on and make our dreams realities. Or we can give in to “the musn’ts and the don’ts” and just quit.

I think you know what choice to make.