23 Things I Learned in 23 years

It was my birthday last week, and I am officially 23 years old. I can’t even believe it!

For the last two years, I have compiled a list of things I learned throughout my life during my birthday week. These lists were originally inspired by a video Karlie Kloss shared on her channel. There are many things in my life that have turned out much differently than I had expected, but there are also things that are better than I would have expected. So here is my list of 23 things I learned in 23 years!

1. Be nice to yourself, you are trying your best.
2. Learn how to say no. No to people and experiences you do not want to have. We always learn about saying yes and tacking opportunities but make sure you are not compromising yourself when doing so.
3. Some people will not like you and that is fine. “You cannot please everyone, you’re not a jar of Nutella.” 😉
4. Don’t let people walk over you. Stand up for yourself or speak up, AND do not compromise for the sake of friendship or avoiding conflict.
5. On the other hand, choose your battles wisely. Is being upset with a store clerk for not being helpful really worth it?
6. If you show people that you treat yourself like a second thought, then others will treat you the same way.  
7. Believe in yourself. Because if you don’t no one will.
8. Make a plan, but be prepared for things to not go your way. You never know what amazing things will come along that were never a part of your plan.
9. It takes time to heal. Just like it takes time for good things to happen, you need to give yourself time to recover.
10. Take care of both your mind and your body. You can’t be your best if you are not taking care of yourself.
11. Stand by your words and actions.
12. Learn when to rest, and when to get up.
13. It’s ok to fail, even if you fail multiple times. You learn from failures, not just successes. Just make sure to get up, dust yourself off, and keep trying.
14. Choose yourself, choose your family, choose what you love.
15. Comparing yourself to others does nothing for your peace of mind or get you where you want to go. Instead, appreciate that everyone has their own journey and stop worrying that yours does not line up with someone else’s.
16. Don’t rush through things. This goes with comparing yourself to others because, by rushing, you may miss what was good for you.
17. It’s the little things that matter even on a bad day. Try and remember one good thing that happened on a bad day, even if it is getting a good cup of coffee.
18. Avoiding your problems DOES NOT make them go away. No matter how desperately you want them to.
19. Your love and happiness are your own and it is your responsibility. It is up to you to ensure it’s safety and make sure that it is not tied to a specific person or experience.
20. If you ever feel like you have no idea what you are doing, don’t beat yourself up. No one really does!
21. You will outgrow people and things. It’s part of life and growing up.
22. You are never too old to learn something new.
23. There is so much time to do things in life, even if it seems like time flies.

This year on my birthday I learned that my favorite quote by Dr. Seuss happens to be from his book “Happy Birthday to You”.

“Today you are you! That is truer than true!

There is no one alive who is you-er than you!

Shout loud, “I am lucky to be what I am!

Thank goodness I’m not just a clam or a ham

Or a dusty old jar of sour gooseberry jam!

I am what I am! That is a great thing to be!”

– Dr. Seuss, Happy Birthday to You!

I loved this quote because it reminds me that everyone is special and everyone is unique. And now I love it even more because me to appreciate my life as a journey and how far I have come.

– Tatyana x