Saturday, April 6, 2013

I Have Three Rules in Life. 1) Look Good. 2) Don't Die. 3) If You Have to Die, Make Sure You Look Good While Doing it.


Although that pretty much is my list of rules in life, this post is less about rules and more about...helpful hints.

Think of them as sort of pro tips.

I was on yet another college visit today and I was listening to the president of the College of Arts and Sciences talk about all the sorts of programs they offer and internships and whatnot, and I heard that most people, unlike me, were Premed, Allied Sciences, or other sorts of applied science fields. I didn't meet another person who was interested in the Liberal Arts there. I was the only English/Linguistics focus, and I got some weird looks from others.

So I guess when they were giving tips and tricks around the campus tour, I thought up some of my own. Not for success in college, of course, but in life in general. This goes for writers, athletes, musicians, anyone.

1. Don't walk the path everyone else does.

I'm serious, not everyone needs to be a doctor, a lawyer, or a business executive. You have your talents, and not using them is like using a manual can opener when you have an electric one next to you. Figure out what you're good at, and run the course that suits those talents. I mean, I can't do math to save my life, becoming a math major is probably not a good idea for me.

But an English major, Linguistics major, a minor in Creative Writing or Spanish? That's all for me. I'm one of those people who can sit and read for hours and not notice the time pass. Language makes sense to me. Why waste my natural strengths in that field just because it's not the most popular major? Do what makes you happy. It just makes it better for the rest of us.

2. The world is run by those who show up.

I was told this in my freshman Honors English class and I've learned it always proves true. I mean, Bill Gates showed up to create the first Macintosh computer, and look where he is now. Nelson Mandela showed up to end apartheid, Martin Luther King, Jr. showed up to a integrated racial relations rally. If you want to make a difference, show up. To class, to work, to whatever your responsibilities are. You never know when life throws you a day that will always stick with you, that will change you. Figure out what you love, and chase it.

And finally,

3. Do YOU.

Whether you love to read and write books like I do, or you'd rather go out for a run or paint a picture or lie around and watch television, do it. Don't look at others and try to emulate them because they're what's 'normal'. You've probably heard it before, but there's no such thing as normal. Trying to fit in only causes you to fall where everyone else falls, and do things you'd never do otherwise. Be yourself. Those who stand behind you will always stand behind you because they know who you are. When I decided I wasn't going to hide my writing anymore, my friends accepted it because they knew that that was me. (Not to mention I'm now their go-to editor for all their English papers). Just decide what you love, chase it, and define yourself.

And now I'm off to go write more dystopian chaos.

Regulations and riots,
Brie

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