I'm at a Fred again concert but he only performed once wtf man

Some stuff I needed to hear when I was 16

I wish I knew that you don’t have to be a “music person” to pick up an instrument. That it’s okay to start learning guitar without studying theory just because you heard a cool riff on Spotify. That anyone who makes you feel bad for trying new things by gatekeeping is someone to be pitied, because they feel the need to bring both of you down to stay on the same level instead of rising up alongside you. I wish I knew that people want you to be better but not better than them.

I wish I knew that caring is cool. That if you show your true feelings enough you’ll filter through the people you don’t get along with super quickly, and find the people that are looking for the real you way faster. The things that made me weird in high school make me cool as an adult, especially to the people I think are cool. People who’s eyes light up when they get excited while talking about something they care about are my favorite people to be around. And it kills me a little inside when after their passionate sharing about something they love they say, “sorry for ranting”. CONTINUE RANTING IF THAT’S WHAT KEEPS THE JOY IN YOUR EYES! WHO TOLD YOU TO SHRINK SO OTHERS COULD TRAMPLE ON YOU WHEN YOU COULD GROW TO BE 100 TIMES BIGGER THAN THEY EVER COULD!

One of my favourite quotes:

Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” — Marianne Williamson, Timo Cruz from Coach Carter

I wish I knew how hard the first year out of university was going to be. That being an adult means accepting that there’s no breaks unless you take them, and summer vacation isn’t coming. Your to-do list never gets done it just expands and contracts (but mostly expands) as you further process how much there is to do, and plan how to fit it into one lifetime. That first year feels crushing as you struggle to do laundry between work, hanging out with friends, going to the gym, getting 8 hours of sleep, remembering to call your mom, and the 17 other things you have to do everyday.

It does get better after, but deciding to drop out of school meant declaring for the draft 2 years earlier than everyone else. And while I knew I was ready, the NBA is way different from college ball, and there were times in that first year that all I could manage to do was get out of bed and go outside, and sometimes not even that.

I wish I knew that you can just ask for what you want. That you don’t get fired if you ask for more money than they planned to give you. Intelligence without confidence is impotence. There is no shortage of smart people in the world, but there is a shortage of courage, and by having courage yourself you’ll make your friends more courageous as well.

I wish I knew that you can be kind to yourself without being lazy. That guilt isn’t supposed to be a typical experience when taking it easy, but that’s because not everyone has to take it easy to feel rejuvenated. If an activity is touted as enjoyable but feels like junk food to you, treat it as such and only do it in moderation. Look for the “chicken thigh” activities — things that feel healthy but don’t taste disgusting. For me, I used to be incredibly addicted to League of Legends, and thought that by using it to escape, I’d be better equipped to deal with the world. I realized that was a lie because every time I played in excess I felt shitty for the rest of the day. Nowadays, I play guitar, rock climb and work on robots to relax — it may feel like work to most people, but those are activities that add energy to my life, while Netflix and doomscrolling in bed take it away.

I wish I knew that if you can’t do it for yourself, do it for others. That you learn more from teaching others that by reading alone. The solution to your loneliness is not waiting around for someone to adopt you into a social group. You’re not 1 party invite away from finding the love of your life. But if you start hosting parties and small events yourself, you’ll find yourself getting invited to more. If you start thinking about how you can be a better friend to others, you’ll find yourself having more friends you love. I wish I knew that loneliness doesn’t go away from spending time at home alone and trying to become comfortable with that, but rather finding people you feel at home with.

I wish I knew that you can fuck up a lot more than you thought you could as a kid. That no one that matters will abandon you for stumbling. Getting feedback about something you did to upset someone is a gift. It’s easy to be liked so most people start surface level positive, but anyone who tells you something negative that you needed to hear is a true friend, and loves you more than anyone who brushed it to the side. It’s the people who want you to improve alongside them and help you do so that love you the most, because they know they’ll be in your life for a long time, and can’t stand to see you face problems you don’t even notice.

I wish I knew it was okay that I wasn’t as good at math as I was writing.

I wish I knew that you’re not corny for saying the obvious stuff because it’ll always be new to someone.

I wish I knew that someday I’d like myself a lot. And anyone who didn’t wasn’t evil, they just were just not my person.

Some of my aforementioned people :^)