22 Things I've Learned: Part Two

I'm back with part two! If you haven't read part one, you can read about it here. I told you these posts were going to be lengthy, so I hope you have your tea, or coffee, and get ready for another good read.

12. Privatize your relationship: I cannot express this enough. Do not air your dirty laundry to your friends and family and then wonder why they do not like your significant other. People tend to cling to the bad rather than the good, and if all you tell others is the bad, that is what they will remember. It is better to just keep it between you and your partner. I have learned that with me keeping it between us, we have been able to solve a lot more problems rather than listening to others. 

13. Debt is not fun: School debt, credit card debt, loan debt, is such a pain. Do not spend more than you have. I also do not spend more than 15% of my credit card, (I only have one) and make my payments on time. Adulting requires budgeting. And saving up for something, makes it a little more worth it in the end.

14.School is important: I know a lot of people say school isn't for everyone and it isn't but it is still important. Whether it be a high school degree, a certification, an associate's degree, a PhD, or something else, education is important. Learn as much as you can, while you can. Like I've said before, college wasn't meant for me right after high school, but with lots of research I have come to the conclusion of what type of school and education is important and valuable to me.

15. Wait to have sex: I lost my virginity at the age of 15, almost 16, and I wish I would have waited even longer. It is not as great as everyone makes it seem. It's really not. You're not missing out on anything. I believe that when you wait for the right person and kind of really established who you are as a person and what you want, it will mean so much more. It should mean something. I think having sex too early can really make you have some self-esteem issues if you aren't really ready. For me personally, it gave me a lot of self-esteem issues. So just wait it out, it'll be worth it.

16. You can have more than one soul mate: There will be people in your life that you really connect with and just really feel a deep connection. There will be more than one. Do not confuse these soul mates as a life partner. Soul mates come and go. They are meant to teach you life lessons and about yourself. I have caused myself a lot of hurt thinking certain soul mates were a life partner. Sometimes you will not realize who your life partner is. I didn't know my husband was my life partner when I met him. I was too wrapped up into my other soul mates at the time. It took years before I realized he was.

17. Pray more, worry less: Worry is the kryptonite to prayers. Cast your worry onto the Lord, he will take care of it all. There have been many times when I have found myself down on my knees, crying to God to take away my worry, my problems, that I cannot do it without Him. When I have done this, it's like a breath of fresh air and a weight has been lifted off of my shoulder.

18. Give your all: Give your all in everything that you do. Work hard, play hard, love hard. Just give everything that you have. Yes you may get hurt, or not properly rewarded, but it feels so much better to know you gave your all rather than not enough.

19.Compete with yourself, not others: The only person you should want to be better than is the person you were yesterday. You are your biggest competition. What can you do to be better than the person you were the day before?

20. Go out of your comfort zone: I have had some of the best experiences of my life from doing things differently. I had made amazing friends, received great jobs, and just great advice in general, from doing things a little differently.

21. Travel A Lot: I thank my mother for creating the desire in me to travel. We took so many family vacations and I have been so many places. I love traveling. It is so much fun and you learn so much. It gives you a new perspective. I have gone on many road trips and plane rides and family vacations and there are many more places I can't wait to explore. Life is an adventure.

22. Open communication is key: People are not always going to like what you have to say but it is better than holding stuff in. I spent majority of my life holding things in, biting my tongue, and exploding later, causing me to lose many people in my life. That could have been avoided if I would have expressed myself. I am better respected from the things I have said, versus the things I haven't. You can't change anything if you don't speak up.

So there you have it. Some very big lessons I have learned over the years, many being very recent. I have learned so much more than this and know that I will continue to learn daily. I hope this read has given others a new perspective to a few things.

Enjoy! & Cheers to being 22 & learning!

Jalesa