We have all been there. Now that we are a little bit older, a little bit more experienced. Have a couple of wins and losses under our belts. What would you want to say to your younger self to make it easier for you? Do you even want to make it easier? Do you wish for some things to never have happened? And here doesn’t mean some stupid mistakes or bad choices. Concentrate on the big picture. Events that have really changed your life. Do you wish that some of them never happened at all?

If you could write a letter to your 20-year-old self. Make it a step-by-step instruction in which you can give the 5 most important pieces of advice. Name five things that you wish you did or didn’t do. What would they be? On what would you focus? Would you focus on your emotional well-being or just wish you had been greedier, faster, or more motivated? This is something that we all need to do for ourselves. And here are the things that I wish my 20-year-old self would have read a long time ago. In case you are in the mood to think about the past check What Is Hiding Under Your Pillow?

1. It’s not the end of the world

Trust me, it’s not. Believe me. It’s completely not the end of the world if you let things fall out of your control. If you crave love that doesn’t mean other people will love you. Do not see feelings in others that you are desperately looking for. That is a path that will lead you nowhere. I know that you are sick of hearing that you are still young. And have a whole world in front of you still. But that is the truth. Don’t rush it. You will find whatever you are meant to find. But it’s not going to happen that fast. It’s not going to happen when you want it most. And it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t happen at all. Learn how to deal with it. Yes, this may sound a little harsh. You need to wake up from the romance novel you have been living in and smell the roses. They don’t really smell like roses. They smell of your plans for the future and what life makes out of it.

2. Learn how to let go

This is something you will be doing more often than you like. Soon you will have to realize that it’s too heavy to carry everything around you and keep score of how many times you have been hurt. I know that revenge is something that you think you are good at. And maybe you are. But it takes too much out of a person and you’re not going to be feeling better no matter how hard you convince yourself.

Let go of people and emotions that don’t serve any purpose in your life. Focus on relationships that make you feel better and let you be you. Letting go of things is not always a sign of weakness. I know that you are a stubborn person. But let me remind you of one of your favorite sayings. If something is corrupted from the start it’s not going to turn better no matter how much time you give it. So count your losses and make better decisions next time. Learn from your mistakes and don’t be scared to let go.

3. Dream bigger

This is my all-time favorite. If you ever thought that your dreams are big you were wrong. I challenge you to dream even bigger. If you ever wanted to be an astronaut, pilot, doctor, or lawyer. Wait there. Don’t move. Dream to be the best astronaut, smartest doctor, or winning lawyer. Whatever you have dreamed so far just keep going. Have the most awesome, cool, amazing dreams, and never doubt yourself.

There will be hundreds of people telling you that you won’t make it. There will be thousands of times you will be thinking the same. But guess what? It doesn’t even matter. At the end of the day, it’s your life and your decisions. Everybody else can kiss your pretty little bottom. Your dreams are only yours and you should try to follow as many as you can. You never know where life will take you. Which part of the world you will be calling home? This is the time when you can easily pack up and go chase the rainbow. So dream bigger, have better plans, and live with your heart and your soul happy. No regrets about anything.

4. Start saying the truth

Yes, you will lose some people in your life. Yes, you won’t be the heart of the party anymore. Yes, it will cost you a lot of popularity. But my dear, life is too short and too precious to keep spending it behind a stupid smile saying nothing. If you don’t feel comfortable leaving. If you don’t like something, say it. If you are getting attacked, defend yourself. If you don’t like the way you are being treated, speak. You will save yourself a mountain of heartbreak if you just follow this advice. Try to remember how many times you have been in one bad situation after another and you knew you deserved better. The only thing preventing you from sadness is that open door you need to pass through. And the name on the door is the truth.

It will be hard for the first time. Of the first ten times. But soon you will get used to it. And the people around you will get used to it also. Soon they will be coming to you for honest opinions. And you will be valued as a person who always tells the truth. It will be worth it. It will enable you to look at yourself in the mirror and think that you don’t owe your loyalties to anybody. You belong to yourself. And that is such a beautiful feeling.

5. Have more compassion

We know that young people care only about themselves. It’s the way how the world works. But never forget to be grateful for all you have. Look around you from time to time. There will be people who have even less. So be compassionate. Think of other people. Try to understand where they are coming from. Restrain from judging other people’s lives and choices. It’s good if you can try to humble yourself and be of service to others. Even if you don’t like others because I know how strong you can be in your principles. You can keep them. But show compassion to everyone. Even to people you don’t really like.

Compassion is very hard to find these days. But it’s important to have it in life. We are all connected to one another. A stranger can make your day beautiful same as a friend. We impact each other lives. And you never know where one of your smiles can save someone or just brighten up their day. So try to show compassion to everybody. Try to show that sometimes you do care about things and people. Even if you don’t like showing it.