I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how much has happened in my life over the last 10 years and how it’s nothing at all like I expected it to be when I was 18. With that in mind, I have some advice I’d give to my 18-year old self. I’m sure that my mom gave me all of this advice back then, and I probably rolled my eyes, but she was right of course.
Advice I’d Give To My 18-Year Old Self
+ You don’t have to be just one thing
I think that it’s easy when you’re young to find yourself in the trap of feeling like you’re just one thing. You’re an athlete or a music junkie or a computer nerd or a fashionista. I definitely think that when I was young, I pushed aside my love for fashion because I loved hockey and I believed that I had to choose. I couldn’t love hockey and style or design. I was so wrong!
As you get older, you will fall in love with so many different things, and that’s okay. You can enjoy sports, fashion, computer games, music and many other things all at the same time. Don’t push aside other passions because you’re so focused on one right now.
+ Enjoy the journey, don’t worry so much about the destination
This is a lesson that took me years to learn. I was so determined at 18 to buy a brand new vehicle, buy a home, meet my partner and start a family ASAP. Every setback in those goals disappointed me and distracted me from enjoying where I was at at the time. Now that I have most of those things, I can really appreciate the time that I spent on my own, working towards my goals, making mistakes and meeting new people. The destination really is great, but it wouldn’t be nearly as special without the journey that brought me here.
+ Fitness & nutrition are not about staying thin
Let me say that again: fitness and nutrition are not about staying thin. I know that this can go one of two ways. In my case, I have always been small and thin, and when I was young, I never considered working out or eating well to be that important because I wasn’t gaining weight.
On the other hand, I know that many young women go to the other extreme trying to become the “thin” version of perfection that they seek.
What I’ve learned, is that keeping up with fitness and nutrition is not about being thin. It’s about being fit, nurturing your body and giving it what it needs. I’ve learned that when I’m fit, I’m less likely to get injured and when I eat nutritious foods, I don’t have to spend as much money on skincare products. But don’t get me wrong, I still eat doughnuts whenever I damn well please.
+ Risks are necessary to creating the life you want
If you just let life happen to you, you’ll never have the life that you want. All of the best things in my life, besides my family, have come to me because I took a risk and did something out of my comfort zone. I met Kirby because I decided to join a soccer team, even though I hadn’t played in 10 years. I quit a cushy job in order to jump into the career of my dreams. I adopted a dog I’d never met before from overseas, and he became the most challenging, rewarding and special parts of my life. Nothing great ever came from staying in your comfort zone.
I hope that this advice resonates for some of you. If you’re young and reading this, you’ll probably be rolling your eyes just like I did to my mom, but trust me, if you listened to all of this advice, the journey wouldn’t be half as fun.
