Words of wisdom to my younger self

Motorcycling across the country in Northern Vietnam

Words and life advice to my younger self

Like many of you, during my Highschool and College years I was hounded by the question “What do you want to do with your life?” or “What do you want to be when you grow up?”. I believe both of these questions to be terrible to impose on a developing mind because they instill the impression that you must choose a single path to follow which is not the case. I don’t blame the older generations who did not have the opportunities that we have today, however, I believe we should choose our words extremely careful when dealing with impressionable individuals even making a simple change by asking “What don’t you want to do when you grow up?” can make a world of difference. Having spent countless nights awake going over these thoughts in my mind I have yet to figure it out, but I am no longer worried as I will enjoy the journey regardless. As the columnist, Mary Schmich wrote,

“Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.”

Young adults often feel pressured by external factors without realizing it, in my own case it comes from the expectations of my family, and wanting to prove to my peers that after dropping out of high school and not finishing college I could still attain my dreams and become successful via my own path. Coming to this realization, and being able to overcome these feelings relieved a great amount of stress allowing me to completely focus on what I needed to do in order to make my dreams come true. Gary Vaynerchuk reaches this point frequently and in one of his most popular call-in sessions, asks his young caller what and who she is trying to prove something to and why? Gary recites a story from his youth, after graduating high school a few of his classmates had gone on to high salaried jobs and made a cruel remark to the effect of “You’re still working at your father’s liquor store?” in a demeaning manner. Statements and situations such as these will leave any human wanting to prove their worth and show their peers up however, it is more beneficial to recognize this mindstate and overcome it by realizing that the long game will be more fruitful (We can clearly see what Gary was able to amount to by maintaining his course). The Dalai Lama, in his book An Open Heart, admits to sometimes having feelings of judgment or arrogance but is able to stop himself and redirect those thoughts. This is part of developing mental fortitude and being able to recognize these thoughts before you are able to take action without consideration. Life isn’t a race and,

“We can always find some quality in someone else where we are outshone.”

There are a yin and yang to everything, including this statement so remember we can always find some quality in another being in which we outshine them just as they have certain aspects in which they outshine us. This is not to say make a regular practice of arrogance but if you are feeling inferior, give this a shot. Always remember that
“Everyone knows something about something, but no one knows everything about everything.”

Don’t spend too much time worrying that you aren’t keeping up with your peers, everyone does things at their own pace. This is much easier said than done, however, you are in complete control over what you are subjected to so if you feel that friend traveling around the world is impeding your ability to perform at your optimal levels, don’t hesitate to block their posts from your feed.

“Life experience is how we level up in the real world”

One of the major reasons why I contribute travel to growth is the exposure to culture, and things that we normally wouldn’t even consider. During my time in Vietnam, I witnessed major poverty, individuals affected by Agent Orange who literally crawled on the streets selling lottery tickets in order to feed their families. The atrocities of the Vietnamese war from the perspective of the Vietnamese people, and let me tell you it is absolutely nothing like America or the History classes you attended portrays. In Japan, I was treated with the utmost kindness by complete strangers, willing to personally drive me across an Island I got lost on and help me put together an itinerary for a hike I was attempting to do, strangers who shared a cab with me when I had simply asked for directions or a busy college student who walked me to the train station when I became lost. I hope you all will provide yourself the opportunity to witness things like this in your lifetime and if so happen we cross paths on our journeys I hope to listen to your amazing stories.