tomorrow i turn 25, which is a number i feel like i’ve been preparing for my whole life up until this point.

at 5 i thought i would be married with kids and live in a mansion by now,

at 15 i thought i would surely have it all together by now,

but now that i’m a quarter century deep into being alive with none of those things having happened yet,

i couldn’t be happier with how everything has panned out up until this point.

with all the failures and successes had from the experiences i’ve lived through, here are some of the 25 conclusions i’ve come to in helping me piece this whole thing together.

1. you’ll still go off to accomplish things no matter how many times you mess up

but you will automatically fail if you never try

2. nothing but the truth stands under the light of observation

you will be told everything you need to know about a situation by detaching your emotions and letting things play out

3. prepare, prepare, prepare!!!

show up early, do your research, load the tickets onto your phone before you’re walking into the event, run through the presentation a few times

4. rotten fruit falls on its own

you don’t need to play God and more times than not karma has already been delivered through how someone currently lives their life

5. if someone constantly has the name of another in their mouth or spreading someone’s business, tread lightly with the information you share

because it’s a matter of time until yours is in there too

6. learn polish the present moment

any moment can be elevated by simple tweaks, like putting on a playlist in the background, opening the windows, lighting a candle, spraying on some perfume, etc.

7. you can always make the money back

but you won’t always have the time or the opportunity so get the top and book the trip!!! the economy could use some $$$ and dreams are expensive

8. save up for what you actually want instead of buying the dupe

it’s always worth it and will likely last longer

9. new experiences will lead you to a new life

in the words of Albert Einstein, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, so if you feel stuck, switch things up

10. your goals are more within reach than you think

and breaking them down into bite sized chunks that you can tackle daily makes consistency possible

11. experiment with your appearance and pay attention to what makes you feel the most confident

& sometimes you need to get bangs to discover what makes you feel the most like yourself

12. courage >>> stewing in your own juice

you don’t need another piece of advice or validation from someone else that you’re on the right track, just do the dang thing

13. the small dog barks the loudest

be wary of people and “truths” that need to screamed from the rooftops in order to be received

14. investing in yourself is never a waste of money

while the largest expenses i cashed in this year could arguably be frivolous in nature, the cost of all the flights, moving to NYC, laser hair removal, and a class-based gym membership have enriched my life experience in ways that keep surprising me

15. let it out

holding things in and acting like you’re okay is more detrimental than truly feeling what you’re feeling and keeping others along for the journey

16. strike while the iron is hot

‘fail early, fail often, but always fail forward.’ — John C. Maxwell

17. happiness is fleeting, but authenticity is everlasting

life isn’t easy all the time, so prioritizing the genuine expression of yourself and unfolding of your path allows for an overall feeling of internal stability that chasing dopamine can’t provide in the long run

18. if a guy says he’s 6’0″ on a dating app he’s 5’10” irl

meeting people in the wild is more fun anyways

19. learn to expect nothing but want everything

approaching life from a perspective of “being in the world and not of it” allows for a lot less disappointment and more flow

20. if something doesn’t go your way it’s funny -Jansyn Samples

(and ammo for your future memoir)

21. what works for someone else might not work for you

so prioritize following what feels best for you

22. if it’s not a hell yes it’s a no

you won’t miss out on the best thing to ever happen to you, so if you don’t have the energy to do something, don’t do it

23. not all pickles are created equally

under no circumstances trust a pickle made with yellow 40 dye

24. keep your side of the street clean to be the lighthouse and not the storm for others

in the wise words of my GT professors Mike Smith, if you want to change the world start with your corner of it, and your corner can start with yourself

25. the point of all of this is to have fun!!!

in the end, it’s all about the journey, so while there is no rulebook telling you exactly what you should do, you might as well try to have the best time getting from a to z

💘, HANNA