Starting college is a time of mixed emotions. You are beginning a new chapter in your life and starting a new adventure, which adds to the element of excitement and anticipating the unknown. You have this new found freedom, you can finally explore things for yourself and not have anyone stop you. At the same time this is scary because you don’t have mom or dad there to catch you if you fall like you always have had in the past… During this time of extreme emotional confusion, some people tend to lose sight of what is important/why they came to college in the first place. In moments of utter confusion, moments of reflection, or any moment for that matter, take a second to think about these few but extremely important pieces of advice that I have been given by loved ones throughout my life…

1. The Good You Do Comes Back to You (and so does the bad)

I know this is hard for some people to understand in certain situations, but always be the bigger person. There are extremely bitter and unhappy people in this world, unfortunately, and this will always be the case. Let them be negative, let them be the rain that ruins a sunny day, but you… you’re going to be the constant positive light. Small gestures that you do for people are always remembered. The littlest of things you do can make someone’s day… and I am a true believer that what goes around comes around. It may not be right away, but it will happen eventually. Positive energy always tends to find other positive energy… and vise versa.

2. Everything Happens For a Reason

This is an iffy piece of advice to give because people always assume that this is said only when something in your life goes south. This is absolutely not the case. Nothing in this life happens “just because”. People come in and out of your life and you don’t always get what you want for reasons. No one has a perfect life, it’s just not possible. You can’t just sit there and say “why me?” This is a complete waste of time. Instead, you’re going to say “this happened and I’m not happy about it, but I learned (or am learning) from it… and I now have the tools I need to move forward.”

3. Do Everything With Passion

It is very obvious to see when a task is done with passion vs when it’s not. I know that it is hard to find a passion in everything that you do because that is just impossible. You are not going to enjoy every task you are given in life – that’s the cold facts. But, if you have to do the task anyway, why not make the most of it? I know that when I am given an assignment, I’m only proud to put my name on it if I gave it 100% of my effort. If it’s possible, twist it in such a way that you can relate to it a bit more. This will help you find a passion in a task that you wouldn’t normally find enjoyable.

4. Have Drive and the Will to Work Hard 

This is the best piece of advice that my dad gives me each and every day. It’s the first thing he tells me when I wake up in the morning, and the last thing he tells me before I go to sleep at night. There are no handouts in life, you have to work hard for what you want. You might ask for some guidance or have a tiny bit of luck along the way, but ultimately it comes down to how much you’re willing to work to achieve your dreams.

5. Don’t Give Up 

Clearly, life isn’t a piece of cake. Things happen that divert your plans – small bumps in the road if you will – but you can’t stop because of these things. Someone will always tell you that you can’t do something. Prove to them that you can and you will do it even better than they could have ever imagined.