runlindsayrun

25

I was going to post this list on my birthday, but it took me longer to compile than I thought it would. So - without further ado - here it is....

**25 Things I Learned Before I Turned 25**

Don't colour your hair at home. It will probably not turn out. And then you can't blame anyone for it.

You can't plan for every great opportunity. Sometimes you need to just put that plane ticket to London on your Visa and call it the simple cost life experience.

People can only hurt you if you give them permission to. You can control your feelings, instead of letting them control you.

It's not worth crying over work.

There are some things you should always be picky about. A partial list: men, shoes, jeans, glasses, french manicures.

You're capable of much more than you think you are. People with arthritis are not supposed to be able to complete marathons.

No one can possibly know what to do with their life when they're 17. All the most interesting people change their mind. And then change their mind again.

When you act smart and confident, people will believe you're smart and confident. When you act like a superfox, people will believe you're a superfox. People only notice your inadequacies when you draw attention to them yourself. Which is why it is critically important to always smile and walk confidently in a bathing suit, even when you think you probably look like a beluga.

You will never regret taking the time to have freshly shaved legs. You will often regret if you don't.

There are no timelines, other than the ones we impose on ourselves. There is no magic age when you're 'supposed' to get married, to have kids, to have a mortgage, to get rid of your university car, to figure out what you want to be when you grow up.

It's okay to let go of old friendships. Some friends will follow us through life, and sometimes you just needed each other for a season.

Honesty is not always the best policy. Little white lies come in handy when someone's baby is ugly, for example. It would not be nice to tell the truth then.

Live without regrets. The mistakes I've made have helped make me who I am.

There is no such thing as a good break-up. Even in those rare situations when you're both better off without each other - and you know it - something deep inside still hurts. And it should. It means you’ve shared part of your true self with someone else.

Take chances. You have no idea what kind of life experience you might be missing out on. You might fly to Vancouver and start a friendship with someone who turns out to be one of your favourite people in the world.

Make sure you have people in your life who you can be 100% authentic with. Life is too short to spend lots of time in superficial friendships.

Asking for help doesn't make you weak.

Make sure you're content in your own life, because it allows you to experience genuine joy when good things happen to people you love.

There are times and places when you'll absolutely need to pretend you're happy when you're not. It's a good use of time and energy to perfect the fake smile.

Give yourself a reason to get out of bed and do your best in everything. Set more goals than you can possibly accomplish, and make them so big they sound stupid to other people.

There is no possible scenario that could ever necessitate wearing sweats in public. It doesn’t matter what you heard in Transcona. Comfortable clothes – or shoes – don’t ever have to be ugly.

Don't take your bad days out on other people. It doesn't make you feel any better, and it wrecks their day too.

Everyone hates the way they look in candid pictures, bathing suits, and bridesmaid dresses. Get over it.

Go out of your way to say something encouraging to one person every day. You think you're just giving them a boost, but you're actually benefitting yourself.

It is critically important to always have one pair of jeans that make you feel like a superfox.

posted by Lindsay @ 8:12 PM