What I’d Tell My Younger Self

“It won’t matter to them as much as it will to you.” That’s probably the most important advice I’d give my younger self.

Many of us can attest to the fact that we’ve felt that need to please those whom we love, respect or adore. We’ve done things that we didn’t want to do simply because we wanted these people to like us, or to be pleased with us – only to realize later on in life that those same people couldn’t have been bothered either way. These people could be our parents, teachers, bosses or even our children or life partners. Sometimes the things we do with the hope of positive impact on the relationship, turn out to be detrimental than effective. And sometimes those choices and decisions have put us in situations that are either impossible or difficult to reverse.

“Follow your heart” is another phrase that’s thrown around so casually these days, so I’d tell my younger self – seriously, follow your heart! Don’t undermine or overlook your passion. Don’t invalidate your feelings and emotions. Don’t put yourself at the back of the line, because that which your heart wants to do is important. It’s important to you, and its important for the impact it will make to those around you.

Looking back now that I am older, I really do wish that someone had given me that advice – or if anyone did, I wish I had listened. I now see so many things that I would have done differently and I wonder how different my life would have been today.