Throughout the course of our lives, we make many mistakes. We’ve had to take in and learn from these experiences the hard way, but let me tell you, this is just life; it will only keep getting harder. We experience new beginnings with a mix of heartbreak, sadness, and anger, which will only continue if you don’t know how to control them. Even though I’m seventeen, I’m observant, and in my little time of life, I’ve thought heavily about the depth of life. 

As a senior right now, there is so much I wish I had done differently in my four years, as this period in our lives is meant to be a learning period. Young person to young person, I would like to give you a piece of my mind; maybe I can help you the way I wish I had been helped. These are the four things I’ve found important: 

1. Trust your Gut
2. Be unconditionally yourself in every setting
3. Have an armor 
4. Understanding your meaning

First, trust your gut and lead with it. In these four years, you will make many mistakes, whether the conflict involves your family, friends, an interested partner, or school. Sometimes you even put yourself in bad situations like getting into a huge fight with your mom or getting in trouble for skipping school. It could be not having an agreement with your friend or even being in a toxic situationship.That nagging feeling in your heart telling you to back off on the negative things, or that wave of sudden understanding; That’s your gut feelings, your subconscious. Listen to it. I promise, it will make things easier for you. At a young age, we’ve been trained to understand right from wrong, and so we should always be able to tell when something is or will go wrong. When you see a situation that may go wrong, take a step back and evaluate, not just the situation itself, but yourself as well. Not only is this about your personal life, but in school, take the hard classes, challenge yourself. If you think you can do the hard things, do it. No one else will do it for you. You will never learn or know unless you try. Just a reminder, trust yourself, hold yourself, you will be okay. You are doing amazing things.

Secondly, be unconditionally yourself in every moment. Let’s be honest, we’ve all had that moment where we’ve changed our ways of speaking or behavior around certain people in the desire to “fit in.” Sometimes people do it because they’re scared they’ll say the wrong things, be too “weird,” or too “much.”  But I’m here to tell you, I promise, you are not any of those things. In fact, being yourself will get you farther than putting up a facade. Anyone who chooses to invest in you or your future wants to see who you truly are. They want to see how you work and how you present yourself. Not just professionally speaking, but in every aspect, you should never put up a fake persona; especially in situations when someone puts their trust in you. You must hold yourself to high standards and be yourself in every moment. If you want to ever make true friends, you must remember that those are relationships built on trust. Never change yourself for others; don’t break yourself down. Remember your values, your morals, and what you’ve been taught. Live by that Every. Single. Day. 

Third, have a strong armor. High school might get under your skin. Not the classes themselves, but the social aspect of it. You may never think you could be a victim of it, but people will always talk, and that conversation may be about you. Whether it’s good or bad, it is absolutely inevitable. There will always be that one person who will have an opinion, one you may not have asked for. Maybe it’s a criticism, or plain jealousy, but remember, you are above that. As long as you are happy, never let what they say get to you. People who speak negatively about others, who point out the wrong, are not mature enough to observe and let go; they’re individuals who want attention. Let it bounce off, let it not get to your heart, because that’s how drama starts, that’s how you become insecure, that’s how you let it taint your heart. Keep in mind, you will never have to deal with those specific people again, but you must keep that armor with you at all times, because you will encounter people like that everywhere you go. The funny part is, it doesn’t matter about age; it will always happen. Remember, take care of yourself, you reflect yourself, and others will see you accordingly, so prepare yourself for anything and everything, keep that armor with you in all walks of life. My best advice is to move on if someone wrongs you; it will be okay, I promise. Though temporarily upsetting, it won’t matter in the long run. Lastly, the most important thing is understanding your meaning in life. Cliche, I know! But it is the most important. I know for a fact you’ve asked yourself at some point in time, “Why am I even doing this?” or probably questioned if what you’re doing now will take you anywhere or lead you to the right place. But let me tell you, IT’S OKAY TO QUESTION. We are teens for a reason! We are finding ourselves and our meaning in life, so it’s okay to not know right now; you’re not supposed to for a reason. But the one thing you must understand is that you are here to do greatness, you are here to teach, and you are here to create. Everything you do creates history, and every action has a butterfly effect. You will do what it is you put your mind to do. Don’t let others bring you down, or change the way you think. Hold yourself ten toes down and be what you preach. Right now is a lot of unknowns and “What ifs,” and that’s the beauty of it. You will one day be where you are meant to be. And remember, life is life, and it will be hard, but it will be worth every second. Do what makes you happy, and learn from it.