11 Things Every 20-Something Needs To Give Up On In Order To Be Successful

1. Give up on your idea of perfection.

You are not and never will be perfect. Give up on the idea that you have to be the perfect girlfriend or boyfriend. On the idea that you have to have the perfect body in order to be happy or to succeed. And give up on this idea that you have to be a robot, instead of human being.

2. Give up on your five year plan.

You can’t plan your whole life out. You can’t map out every tiny detail.  Give up on controlling everything and everyone around you, including your future. You can’t effectively plan the next five years of your life just like you can’t plan out what tomorrow will bring for you.

3. Give up on your need to please everybody.

Not everyone in this world will love and adore you. You don’t have to be liked by everyone in order to feel fulfilled. Don’t let one persons idea of you destroy your self esteem and your self worth. You are so much more than a stranger’s opinion of you.

4. Give up on society pressures.

Give up on the idea that you need to be better and do better. You don’t always have to be on the run to make more money, get more fit, find more friends, get a  better job. Don’t give in to the idea that you always need to be working until you drop. You’re allowed to slow down.

5. Give up on the need to always be in a relationship.

Let yourself be alone. Know that you don’t need to always be with someone in order to be happy. Learn how to be by yourself and how to be content with just you. You won’t get anywhere in life if you are always attached to someone else and if you always need someone to hold your hand to get through hard times.

6. Give up on all the toxic people in your life.

In the end, these people will only bring you heartache and more worry. You don’t need negative people to interfere with your life, and it will only make you more miserable. Let them go, no matter how hard it will be. Let that weight be lifted off of you.

7. Give up on your fear of mistakes.

You will make terrible mistakes. You will make errors and will fuck up more times than you count. You will make mistakes that will make it hard for you to even forgive yourself. But know that that is normal. And instead of being terrified of every tiny mistake, embrace it. And learn from them. And grow.

8. Give up on your fear of being judged.

People will talk behind your back and say nasty things about you while you aren’t listening. It’s just a fact of life that you won’t make everyone in this world happy. So stop being so scared of standing up for yourself. Let yourself be judged and lift your chin higher in the air. Fuck the haters.

9. Give up comparing yourself to everyone else.

It’s easy to get into an endless cycle of comparing and contrasting yourself to your peers. You need to let that cycle go in order to live your best life. You aren’t going to get anywhere looking at Amy’s thigh gap or Rebecca’s perfect job. This is your life you are living, not theirs.

10. Give up on the idea of a perfect life.

No one has a perfect life. Everyone goes through trying times, and struggles of their own. Open yourself up to tragedies and heartache. Don’t hide your beauty and talent in fear of rejection. Live your life and stop being so petrified of failing. Everyone, and I mean everyone fails. In the long run, you will be grateful for those failures and life lessons.

11. Give up on old dreams.

If those old dreams you used to have are collecting dust in your closet and aren’t a part of your life anymore, let them go. Move on and move forward to what makes your heart light up now. It’s okay to let those dreams and fantasies go, if it’s not what you need or want right now.