If you are someone who does not regret anything from your 20s, you are either a monk or you are still a teenager.
I too, have made mistakes and learned my fair share. Here is the crux of what my journey taught me.
1. Waiting for motivation to kick in:
Here is the deal. “You are never ready.”
Motivation is a myth. It is an emotion that is highly appealing and sellable on the internet.
I always believed that in order to start a new project and follow that workout routine, I need the motivation to kick-start the process.
From experiences, I realized that just getting started is more important than waiting to become perfect. There will always be flaws in your plan. Instead of contemplating yourself and waiting to feel motivated, begin with what you have, where you are, and who you are. Action trumps everything! Once you take action, evaluate and adjust as you go along.
Instead of looking for motivation, come up with a small action you can do that gets you moving in the right direction.
2. Not trusting the time of your life:
Everything comes to you at the right time. You must be patient and understand that your time will come. I have my fair share of experience when it comes to being impatient with growth and progress in my personal and professional life. What I learned was that it is important to understand that life happens, and everything happens for a reason.
In case things didn’t turn out to be in your favor, just remember that it happened only because it was probably not the right time for you.
3. Ignoring my physical and mental health:
When mental and emotional states are at peak levels, the challenges of life can be easier to overcome. Mental health greatly correlates with personal feelings about oneself. Overall mental wellness plays a part in your
Self-esteem. Ignoring mental health and keeping on dragging yourself to the level where you can have burnout and emotional meltdown can affect your physical well-being as well. It took me some time to understand that physical well-being is above all the promotions, closing sales, achieving that contract, and running behind that high-paying job. Working out religiously, meditating, and staying hydrated have now become a lifestyle.
4. Not standing up for myself:
It can feel really awkward to assert ourselves in certain situations, and being caught in tense situations can drudge up painful memories and insecurities. I used to be one of those at work place who would listen to everybody and feel sorry for myself for being vulnerable. As I became self employed and had many encounters with various professionals I learned to speak assertively and communicate with intention. Being a fresher or a newbie you might forget one thing
You deserve as much respect as anyone else.
I learned that Being assertive and standing up for yourself doesn’t mean being rude. It doesn’t mean being a tyrant or being aggressive. Standing up for yourself is simply having confidence.
5. Rejection is redirection:
I have always had plans for my life since I was a child. Everything was going according to plan and suddenly I got rejected from the college where I always wanted to study. How could it happen? It was part of the plan. I completed my education at another college which turned out to be my workplace later. Now if I had not been rejected I would have never worked in the college. You see that rejection redirected my career trajectory. After that job rejections, assignments rejection, project declines, proposal rejection,s and so on. But my thought process was then shifted. Don’t fixate on opportunities that fell through. Instead, choose to see them as a step forward toward the right path. Have patience and believe in your potential, rejection is part of life and it will build your resilience over time.
