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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Kent State chapter.

I just recently had my 20th birthday and have been reflecting on different lessons I have learned in the first two decades of my life. While 20 years seems like such a short part of your life overall, these two decades have been life changing for me. Here are some of the things I’ve learned thus far, hopefully much more to come.

It is okay to not have everything figured out.

You are still young (even if you feel old now) and have so much time to find yourself and what you want to become. Be patient and it will come.

Self love.

I cannot express how important it is to love and appreciate yourself. You are special, valuable and beautiful. If you can’t see it in yourself, then how is anyone else supposed to?

Take others opinions into consideration.

At the end of the day, it’s your life and you are the one living it, but sometimes others make really good points because they are an outside perspective. Make sure whatever you do makes YOU happy and that you aren’t doing it for someone else.

Spend time with the people that are important to you.

Go visit your grandparents. Have a movie night with your family. Go for a walk with your dog. It may seem like you have all the time in the world with them, however, time is fleeting and you may not have as long as you think, so cherish the time you do have.

Take time for yourself everyday.

Whether that be taking a bath, meditating, reading a book or journaling, shut off the rest of the world and take this time to reflect and relax because you deserve it. 

You can’t force relationships.

If someone wants to be a part of your life, they will make an effort to be.

Every relationship is important.

It either taught you what you do or don’t want out of a relationship, so learn from them.

Never take anything for granted.

I know this is such a common saying, but it is such an important one. Life can change on us so quickly, and you don’t want to live your life regretting things you did or didn’t do in the past.

Say yes to adventure.

Even if it seems scary or intimidating, say yes. The things that scared me the most ended up being the most rewarding and educational. You can learn from new experiences.

Sometimes having a small friend group is okay.

Having a smaller group of friends who you can truly depend on and go to for anything is far better than having a huge group of friends you are sort of close with.

Growing up is scary, and that is okay.

No one wants to grow up, but it is not something you can avoid so take it in strides and learn from your experiences as you go.

“If you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life.”

This is one of my favorite quotes and something I have always strived to live by. You are going to work in your profession for many many years, so make sure it is something you love and are passionate about.

Making mistakes is perfectly fine.

We are all human and no one is going to be perfect 100% of the time. The important thing is that you learn from your mistakes and use them to better yourself.

Just be nice.

I know this seems pretty basic, but being mean and rude to others will get you nowhere. It is that simple: be nice.

Doing things alone can be fun.

Take yourself out to dinner or to coffee. Go shopping by yourself. I used to be so scared of going places alone, but now it is something I look forward to when I just need some time to myself. 

Remove the toxic people in your life.

It may be hard to do at first, but once you do you will be so much happier.

Bad days happen.

Sometimes you just have a bad day or week or month, and that is okay. Let yourself have that moment and then move on. Life goes on and you can’t dwell on the past. Accept what happened and learn from it.

Learn to laugh at yourself.

Don’t take life so seriously, we all embarrass ourselves or make dumb mistakes. Laugh at yourself because when you do, you will feel much better.

It is okay to fail.

Failure is important as it allows us to learn from our mistakes and pushes us to work harder for success.

Finally, be happy.

In whatever you are doing, make sure you are happy. If you are not, either change the situation or change your attitude.

I feel like I’ve learned quite a bit in the last 20 years, but here’s to many more learning experiences ahead!

Natalie is a freshman fashion merchandising student with a double minor in marketing and fashion media at Kent State. At home in Springboro, Ohio she enjoys spending time with friends, family, and her dog, Maci. Her interests include fashion, beauty, lifestyle, dogs and much more! In high school, she danced and participated in her high school's choir and theater program. While her studies are very important to her, she does enjoy being involved in many clubs and organizations including the Fashion Student Organization, Modista, and of course Her Campus. She hopes to one day live in a big city working for a fashion magazine, and just generally doing what she loves.
Junior at Kent State, with a mojor in journalism and a minor in fashion media. I like to write about fashion, lifestyle and Harry Styles.