Have you ever been so stressed that you made yourself sick? You know that kind of “stressed” when you try to please everybody, but only a handful of people are actually proud of you? You hardly ever feel good enough because people expect so much from you all of the time.

All my life I’ve tried to get as close to perfection as I could; not for myself, but just so no one would have anything mean or condescending or just flat-out bad to say to me or about me. This is something that I’ve struggled with for a while now – so long that you would think I discovered the cheat codes to make it through this morphed game of life. But truth be told, I can’t give anyone who shares this same struggle any real advice because it’s still an ongoing battle for myself.

As I’ve gotten older, however, I’ve learned that you simply cannot please everyone. While there were people criticizing me for moving out of my parents’ house, there were also people who constantly asked me why I stayed there instead of living on my college campus. While there were people who were happy that I passed all of my classes this semester, there were also people who asked why I don’t have a 4.0 GPA! They claim that they know me “better than that” – whatever “that” is.

Those same people who believe that they’re “pushing you to be better because they love you” are the same ones who hammer into your life’s glass house. They don’t realize it, but we do.

It’s not like they’re doing it on purpose, though; they really do want what’s best for you. But, sometimes what they want for you is either not what you want for yourself, or is too luxurious of a standard for you to ever reach.

Honestly, it’s all about how you feel about yourself. I’m happy at this point in my life because I know that I could’ve turned out a lot worse. People shatter under societal and familial pressure everyday. I'm just happy that I've found enough balance to stay calm and focused.

Keep a level head, drink plenty of water, stay close to God, and strive to reach YOUR goals.

“…those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

-Dr. Seuss