26 Things You Absolutely Need To Learn About Life By 26

Grace Chung
Grace Chung

1. It’s okay to be wrong. Sometimes, you cannot avoid making mistakes, having bad choices. Those are what spice your life up, and make it feel so much more amazing to be alive. Learn how to accept defeat.

2. Learn from mistakes. If you end up doing the same thing, learn from it the second time around, until it becomes ingrained in you. Learn from them, and be a better person because of them.

3. Do what you love to do. If you’re still stuck with the day job you loathe, this is the time you quit it and do whatever makes you happy. Find something that makes your heart burn with passion, and makes you want to get up in the morning, ready to seize the day.

4. Stop giving fucks. Give yourself a break. If you’ve always lived your life according to how society tells you to live it, now is the time to stop caring about what other people think. What YOU think is what matters the most.

5. Be in the present. Stop taking selfies, for crying out loud. Enjoy the sunset, savor your food, try to enjoy the moment as it is right now.

6. Stop rushing. Don’t just keep stuffing your face with food, chew it. You agreed on a day with the family, but you’re on your phone 90% of the time. Put that thing down, and learn how to enjoy the moment. Laugh at people’s jokes, listen to people’s stories. You can never bring time back, just relax and take it easy.

7. You can’t stay mad forever. At this point, you have to learn how to forgive. The person you had a fight with years ago probably already forgot all about it, and you have to learn how to do that as well. You cannot live with a heavy heart for the rest of your life. Forgive people, forgive yourself.

8. Learn to say no. You never have to prove anything to anyone. You’re done with trying to be cool and going with the cool kids just so you’re one with the crowd. If you want to stay home in your pj’s and binge-watch new Netflix series, then learn how to say no to the crazy kids inviting you out for beer pong. You deserve it.

9. Learn to say yes. You don’t have to deprive yourself of all the fun for the rest of your life just because you’re 4 years away from being 30. Learn how to say yes to friends whenever you know you deserve a break from all the stress. This, you also deserve.

10. Change is a good thing. You have to learn to stop fearing change. Change is everywhere, and that’s a good thing. You don’t have to panic about everything that is changing in your life. Just go with it.

11. Be honest to yourself. The only person who knows who you really are and what you can be is yourself. Learn how to accept who you are, and know that you are wonderful, no matter what your flaws are.

12. You cannot control other people. You have to learn how to stop telling people how they should live their lives. You can suggest or just tell them how you feel, but you cannot ever ask them to stop doing what they want to do.

13. Always put yourself first. It’s okay to think about the people you love sometimes, but remember to always put yourself first. Your family is important, your work, your friends, they are all very important, but it is you who will live your life until the very end, and not anybody else. Find it in your heart to put yourself above anything else, because you are important too.

14. Use your words wisely. Maybe you’re simply just not aware of it yet, but your words are very powerful. They can either make or break people. You’ll never know whose feelings you’d be hurting if you choose the wrong words.  So remember to think before you speak (or write).

15. Waiting is okay. Some things don’t just happen instantly. Sometimes, you have to be patient, and things will fall into place at the perfect time.

16. You cannot please everybody. This is something you might have learned years ago, but you have to keep it in mind. Not everyone will think you’re as amazing as you truly are. Some people will want to bring you down, simply because they are not blown away by your thoughts and ideas. Some people will want to be out of your life in a jiffy, because they feel that you are not worthy of their time. And they are never worth your time either.

17. Be open to growth. The moment you learn that your flaws make you who you are today, is the moment you learn that you are still growing, every single day. Learn how to embrace your insecurities.

18. Make the most of life now. Stop being scared of failing in whatever it is you want to accomplish. The point of doing things now is not how it ends up, but what you learn in the process.

19. It’s never too late. You can still do what you’ve always wanted to do in life. It’s not too late to be as adventurous as you’ve always wished you could be. Travel far and wide, go see the places you’ve only seen in your dreams, leave your comfort zone and live your life to the fullest.

20. Smile. No matter what you’re going through, smile at people, smile every single day and life will smile back at you.

21. Be kind. You don’t know what everyone else is going through. It wouldn’t hurt if you learn to be kind to everyone you meet and see every day.

22. Believe in miracles. They are everywhere.

23. You will lose people along the way. These people are not meant to be in your life forever. Some were there just to give you a certain lesson that you can keep with you for the rest of your life, some will just make you realize that you deserve so much better and that you need to let them go if they are not meant to stay in your life.

24. It’s going to hurt. And it’s going to hurt a lot. You will have to accept and face this hurt, because this will make you even stronger than you are. Sometimes, things will hurt as you get better, and that’s what makes it so much worth it in the end.

25. But you’re going to be okay. Because you have gone through twenty-five years of your life without ever giving up. You’ll do great things. You’ll meet wonderful people along the way. You’ll see beautiful places and make new mistakes. You’ll be okay.

26. Nobody has life figured out. So what if you’re stuck with a job you hate, or you recently just quit your job and you don’t know what to do next? So what if you feel like you’re alone and you don’t know what your purpose in life is anymore? Nobody has life figured out. Everybody is scared. Everybody feels alone. Everybody doesn’t know what to do next or what their purpose in life is. You have to stop worrying and just go with it. Life is beautiful and so are you. Thought Catalog Logo Mark

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writer of words / hot sauce fanatic / expert laugher, argue-r, cry-er

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