In this episode, Dear Younger Self, we will take a moment to acknowledge the lessons we have learnt along the way and the accomplishments we can easily overlook.
During our time together, I will share three things that I would say to my younger self, but before we do, I just wanted to make a few things clear.
Hindsight is wonderful, but perhaps it shows up when it’s a little too late. Understanding a situation or event only after it has happened or developed might be helpful next time around if we are quick enough to learn the lesson. The aim of our time together is not to visit camp regret and beat ourselves up but rather to inspire ourselves with how far we’ve actually come.
If you could go back to when you were eight, what would you say to your younger self?
This is what Taylor Swift has to say “If I had to give my younger self some advice, I think it would be that you have to laugh at things that scare you, things that intimidate you, things that hurt you, When you’re humiliated, when you’re rejected, you have to be able to take these bad experiences you have and turn them into a great dinner party joke”.
My inspiration comes from one of my favourite movies, “The Help”. If you haven’t seen it yet, I would definitely recommend it.
The three things that I would say to my younger self are: “You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”
#1 You is kind.
Kindness can often be related to how you treat others but hardly regarded to how you treat yourself. You will be praised for all the things that you do for others or how hard you work even when you are running on empty. In the year 2022, one in three Aussies will suffer from burnout where they have worked themselves to the ground. So not only be kind to others but also yourself. Work and actively rest as well.
#2 You is smart.
People will have opinions about what smart looks like; however, that is what it is, simply their opinion. Intelligence takes many shapes and forms, so find what you are passionate about and pursue it. Design a life filled with purpose and adventure because you are smart and capable of doing great things if you believe you can.
#3 You is important.
You are one of a kind and have a place in this world that no one else can replace. When you own your importance, you will make decisions accordingly. Learn to say both yes and no. When you know to say one thing and instead mean the other, you can find yourself in situations that don’t serve you.
Now that I have shared what I would say to my younger self, I encourage you to do the same.
You’ve taken many steps, solved many problems, and left many tasks and challenges behind you.
I have a resource for you called the “accomplishment list”, which prompts you to acknowledge all that you have accomplished up to this point, and I am not talking about just the obvious ones. To gain access, click here, and if you are a subscriber, head over to your inbox.
On a finishing note, how proud would your eight-year-old self be of all that you’ve navigated? Perhaps more than you give yourself credit for. So remember, “You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”
Recommended Resource: Purpose, its benefits and why we can’t live without it
