1. Don’t be afraid to dream: you may be mocked for seeing the good in everything, maybe even dubbed delusional, but hold on to your dreams; they are valid.
2. You are allowed to have a bad day: allow yourself moments of rest.
3. Trust your intuition: when you feel that something is off, do not second guess yourself.
4. Don’t run from yourself: when you find yourself avoiding to face yourself, know that something is wrong. You should be able to face yourself in your singleness and when in a relationship; when you have a job and when you do not.
5. Save: financial literacy is self-taught; consciously seek to learn it. Do not allow yourself to get carried away at the moment and spend money on things that are not building. Have a purpose for your money, set financial goals and handle your money so that it serves you.
6. Don’t be afraid to choose what is best for you: allow yourself to make unpopular choices when they are what you want.
7. Learn to let go: learn to move on when it calls for it. Quit the job. Leave the relationship. Move out. Learn that some things come to stay; others are seasonal.
8. No condition in life is permanent: know that no matter what you are facing, a new day will come. Whenever you find yourself feeling stuck, know that no condition is permanent.
9. Actively work towards your dreams: in as much as you should dream, there too should be an active will to do the work. Dreams remain just that for as long as there is no active will to make them a reality.
10. Always remain honest: because integrity is what will ensure that you always remain true to yourself. Do what is right even when no one is watching; make the right choices.
11. Your purpose lies where your burden is: your passion will drive you to what you should do for the rest of your life.
12. You must be teachable: it is not okay to hold onto an uninformed viewpoint. Learn new things; learn new perspectives.
13. Speak your truth: do not be afraid to stand up for what you believe in. Do not swallow your words; do not choose silence when you want to speak and believe what you have to say is worth being heard.
14. People are different: we are born into different households; we are brought up with different beliefs and do not perceive life the same. It is okay to accept that people are different; you stand to gain relationships with people from all walks of life.
15. Step outside of your comfort: do things you have always wanted to do: travel, meet new people and take the risk.
16. Don’t be bound by fear or the fear of rejection because it can be redirection. You stand to gain a lot by taking the chance than allowing fear to dictate your process. It is better to have learned, then wonder what may have been.
17. People come; people go: you will lose some people along the way and it will hurt. However, allow yourself to be grateful for what they brought into your life, what they taught you and how they left you better.
18. Work on your perspective: be cognizant that much of how we perceive the world is based on how we look at life. Always clean the lens through which you look at life by asking yourself what you may not be seeing, putting yourself in the shoes of the next person and allowing yourself to see the other angle.
19. Love and then love some more: no matter how many times you give love and it is not reciprocated, do it again and again and again.
20. Everyone has their season and things happen at their own pace. You gain little by fixating your eyes on the journey of everyone else and comparing yourself.
21. Remember to pause: reflection allows us perspective – and sometimes, you need to pause to allow yourself to get a holistic overview of your life and to be able to redirect and refocus.
22. Create your tribe: reach out to people when you need help. No one is an island; no one knows everything and no one can journey this life alone.
23. Your parents are not always right but they have the best intentions for you. Glean from their understanding and knowledge they have walked life long before you and they have wisdom they can pass on.
24. Pay attention when people speak: they tell you a lot more than you know if you listen closely. Learn the skill of listening.
25. Your health is important: you cannot go through life eating just anything you want because your health should be a priority. Ensure you pay attention to how you nourish your body and with what.
26. Decide who you want to be outside of external forces and outside of what anyone thinks. Then decide to actively step into that version of yourself. Work on it and become it.
27. Start on your dreams: do not wait for a better time, a better opportunity or a better moment because sometimes the better does not come.
With love, Mavis
Find me on twitter - @mavisbraga