It’s a known scientific fact that when you’re 18 you’re fearless, invincible and selfish. Heck some people never grow  of it. You’re like Batman minus the daddy issues and with an extreme case of arachnophobia (I’ve played enough Resident Evil to survive a  Zombie Apocalypse or an Ebola outbreak but the day those arachnid bastards start taking over I’ll commit Seppuku).  It isn’t until later in life that you realize that you’re actions do have consequences, you’re decisions do come back to haunt you, and that eating 3 Big Macs a day with 6 beers really isn’t a Healthy diet (pfft, screw you Dr. Oz, what do you know about cholesterol and diabetes?!). At the end of the day you’re left with a ton of friends pissed off at you, a beer belly, and a Burger King gut. Luckily it’s in our power to learn from our mistakes, rights some wrongs, but most importantly become a better person with each passing day. Here is a list of things I learned, and am still learning, throughout my life:

Life lesson number 1: Never change something good for something you think is great because what you think is great might turn out to be good and make you realize that what you had was already great.

Life lesson number 2: Also, in reference to the above statement, don’t cling to something you know doesn’t deserve you but also have realistic expectations. You can’t expect to land a princess if you aren’t no prince yourself, this applies both ways.

Life lesson number 3: People do have the ability to change but it doesn’t happen overnight, it takes months, I dare say even years in most cases. If someone has been the same for 20+ years, do you really think they’ll change in 2 weeks?

Life lesson number 4: Don’t mistaken remorse for change. Just because someone feels guilty about something and says they’ll never do it again, doesn’t mean they have or will change. Remember, the guilt will eventually fade…

Life lesson number 5: You can be whoever you want to be whenever you want to be. It’s never too late to reinvent yourself into what YOU want, and not what others want you to be. The worst thing you can do is lie about who you are to someone because at the end of the day you only lie to yourself. If someone can’t accept you for you then they don’t want to be with the real you, hence they don’t deserve to have the best of you.

Life lesson number 6: You will meet many people along the long winding road called your life, some good some bad, some replaceable others unforgettable. Each of these persons will contribute to your life and teach you something new, even if it’s something small, it’s still there. Time to accept this and move on.

Life lesson number 7: There will be times that you meet someone you instantly click with, where you can start a sentence and they can finish it, where you will enjoy every moment you spend together and can’t help but smile when you think of them. There will also be times where you meet someone that you don’t click with, who can’t finish your sentences, who you probably don’t enjoy the moments you spend together and most likely make  you frown when you think of them. Don’t try and force it with someone who you know will make you miserable when there are plenty who will make you smile.

Life lesson number 8: Now, just because a person can’t finish your sentences and does not have much in common with you, doesn’t mean they cannot make you smile. Sometimes the best people you will meet in your life, who will go out of their way to make you happy, have very little in common with you. It does not mean that they are less worthy than someone who does, it just means they are at a slight disadvantage from the starting line. They just could be the ones to cross the finish line though…

Life lesson number 9: Don’t jump off the deep end trying to save someone who is deliberately drowning themselves because you might just end up drowning along with them. Let’s face it, some people just want to be miserable and enjoy draining the happiness out of everyone around them like some sort of walking black hole. We all know at least one person who falls into this category, you know, that person who’s always complaining about how unhappy they are with themselves and with their life yet are reluctant to do anything at all to better themselves. The ones who are constantly getting into harmful relationships and complain that all they do is get involved with assholes but have turned down all the good people worth giving a chance to. They don’t want to help themselves and yet expect everyone around them to mend to their needs. These people are a cancer, a disease and should be avoided at all costs. At the end of the day, you can’t help someone who isn’t willing to help themselves. It may sound selfish but sometimes you need to let someone drown so they can learn to swim.

Life lesson number 10: Don’t believe everything you hear, always come to your own conclusions. The whole reason you were born with a brain is so you can think for yourself, don’t let me or anyone else tell you what to think or believe. We all have individual life experiences, that’s what makes us different, no two are the same. This list would probably be different if you wrote it, maybe it’s time that you did…

Written by: Del Rivers