You rang in 25 wearing a dress you feared you were too old for, at a club you thought you were too old to be at. But those things couldn’t further from the truth. At 25, even though you think you’re officially ‘old,’ you’re not. Sure, time is going by and that means you’re getting older. But it doesn’t mean you’re getting old.
From now on, spend the rest of yours 20s embracing how young you are, instead of worrying about how old you’re getting.
When you’re at the bar, don’t waste your night examining the people around you, trying to figure out how much older you are than everyone around you. Enjoy the time you have with your friends. Talk to people. Dance. Enjoy yourself. Bars were not created as 21+ places where it is weird for people over 25 to go to and unacceptable for anyone over the age of 28 to inhabit.
Love your job, and if you don’t, look for a new one. Be happy with the career path you’re headed down, and if you’re not, change it!
Stop waiting for a nonexistent pile of money to miraculously land in your savings account. It’s not going to. So move to that new city. Travel. Go overseas. Explore an island you’ve never heard of. Cross the country to visit your friends. Don’t just go to Vegas, but do Vegas. Do all of the things you’ve always wanted to do (within reason), and if you find out you don’t love something you thought you would, don’t do it again. The same goes for people 😉
Tell people how you really feel. Tell yourself how you really feel. Stop caring about what other people are doing, and don’t judge others if they’re not doing the same as you.
Don’t be fake. Don’t play games. Don’t be afraid of love, and don’t be afraid of being alone. Don’t put off big decisions or changes. Life only moves faster as each year goes on. Act now and whatever is supposed to happen will follow. Do what you feel is right, not what you think is right. Live life with your heart on your sleeve and only worry about yourself while you still can. Be selfish.
Stop panicking that you’re getting closer to 30. Stop panicking that you’re not where you think you’re supposed to be in life. Stop making choices because you think those are the choices you’re supposed to be making at your age.
When it comes down to it, age is just a number. That’s all it is. It’s not a point in your life where you should have already accomplished X, Y, and Z. It’s just a number stating how many years you have physically existed on Earth.
32 doesn’t mean you have to get pregnant. 28 doesn’t mean you have to get engaged or be with the person you’re going to get engaged to. 26 doesn’t mean you have to stop going out. 25 doesn’t mean that you need to figure everything out.
Seriously, laugh at yourself for thinking that you are “struggling” through a “quarter life crisis” right now. There is no fucking crisis. Instead of spending time freaking out about entering the 2nd quarter of your life, spend your days and nights painting the town red because you are young and your life, your career, your relationships are all just beginning.
Right now, you are in your 20s, and you’re going to be until the day you turn 30. And turning 30 doesn’t mean you have to stop going out with friends, have a ton of money saved, be married, be a parent, or have your career path figured out. It just means that time will have gone by, as it always does. You will still be free to be you and do you – whether that means you tackle all or none of the above.
After all, age is really just a number – and who wants to waste their years panicking about a number? Not you. You have better things to spend your time doing. So stop wasting your life and start living, or else in three years, you’ll be left wondering “what if” in addition to why that book isn’t finished yet and why literally almost nothing has changed while everything has changed, all at the same time.
