What would you tell your 18 year old self?

"If you could view your future through the eye
of your 18-year old self, what words of wisdom
would you give your about life, success,
and the pursuit of happiness?"

       

If I could talk to myself at 18 this is what I would say:

   Learn to trust yourself more. Don't hesitate to make decisions that no one else agrees with but which you sense deep down is the right path for you. Come out of your comfort zone and start going after your dreams. Everyone else is just as scared as you are. Let yourself feel. Get excited over something trivial, Laugh for an absurd amount of time over nothing. Be giddy, and silly, and goofy, and let yourself feel ridiculous, because, frankly, life is more fun when you can move past the ridiculous social norm of unapproachable detachment. Let yourself be inspired. Let yourself take charge of something you know you’ll be an amazing leader at, and let yourself concede the head position to someone who will be better than you. Let yourself feel big and powerful, and let yourself feel miniscule and inconsequential. Keep everything in perspective, and remember that for every person whose life you wish you had, there are many more people who would do anything to have yours. Experience anything you can in life you will become a well-rounded human being from this. Be open to people…to experiences…to emotions, to food, to writing, reading, learning, singing, laughing. Make a lifelong friend of the quiet, unassuming person you see every morning at the coffee shop, or bus stop, scream-sing along with cheesy ‘80s songs on the radio, Perform a random act of kindness, because you never know what someone is going through, or whose life you could potentially improve, or even save. Laugh in the middle of an awkward situation. If nothing else, it’ll be a good story to tell later. In short, let yourself live. Don’t prematurely ensconce yourself in a placid life of repetitive simplicity. There’s a time for settling, and that time is not now. While you are still young, you must explore and experience everything. Don’t worry so much because everything will eventually work out someday and if it’s meant to be it will happen.  To worry about things that have not happened is a waste of time.  Spend your precious time doing anything else but worrying about what your life will be. Live in the moment. Gauge your progress by your internal/emotional results, not your financial or social results. If you're happy and fulfilled, you're on the right path. If not, you have changes to make. The external results will come after the internal results, but by then you'll realize they barely even matter. 

Now it's your turn, what would you tell your 18 year old self?