25 Powerful and Memorable Life Lessons I Learned By 25 that You Need to Know

On July 10th, I turned 25. (yay!) Every time a birthday comes around, I think reflection is insanely crucial and beneficial way to becoming your best self. Sometimes we are so bogged down with life that we forget the important life lessons we’ve learned along the way. This was a somewhat emotional birthday for me because I felt the shift and the need to leave behind everything I’ve outgrown. The past few years have been dedicated to healing, finding my worth, finding my passions and of course, finishing school. Now that I’ve done so much self-development, I have a great feeling that year 25 will be more about joy, following my dreams, and betting it all on myself.

After reflecting on the past year, I wrote a list of life lessons that I want to share with you. I hope that you can take what resonates, and be open to what may not! I hope these gems help you along your journey.

25 Important Life Lessons:

Life Lessons:

1. It is my responsibility to choose and prioritize myself. I am the most important person in my life and it’s not selfish to acknowledge that.
2. Suffering in silence is a major disservice to myself. My feelings, emotions and voice matters and deserve to be heard without guilt or fear.
3. It is perfectly fine to simply exist. I am still just as worth it despite what I do or don’t do.
4. Life is constantly changing and relinquishing control is a constant practice that needs to be incorporated in my daily effort to maintain peace. Fighting what is naturally taking place will only bring me more pain and discomfort.
5. Reflecting from a place of growth versus a place of judgment makes a huge difference in the way I view myself.
6. Acting like something didn’t happen doesn’t change the fact that it did happen.
7. It is not my responsibility to manage people’s emotions or control their perception of me.
8. I don’t have to believe or live the storyline that was created for me – I can create my own based on who I actually am instead of who others want me to be.
9. Meeting myself where I’m at is the quickest way to create peace within and decrease resistance. Finding gratitude in the present doesn’t mean I don’t want better for myself.
10. The trauma that I have experienced was not my fault. However, it is my responsibility to heal.
11. Vulnerability is my friend, not my enemy. Vulnerability is necessary for deep, safe, and intimate connections with myself and others.
12. I will never have to force anything that is mine.

Love Lessons:

13. Romantic love is not the only thing to look forward to in life. My person will come when they are meant to come and there is nothing wrong with being single.
14. Attachment and/or connection is not love.
15. I cannot love someone into loving me. I cannot love someone into reciprocity. Their decision to love me is their choice and they can also choose to do the opposite.
16. Words are cute but actions to back them up is better. Don’t accept anything less.
17.  Boundaries are the key to any healthy relationship.
18.  All the excuses in the world doesn’t change the fact that if they wanted to, they would. And even if they don’t, their decision does not determine or affect my worth.
19. Sometimes I will be the issue in my relationships and admitting that is powerful and courageous. It’s okay to make mistakes.

Financial Lessons:

20. I am worthy of charging my worth and standing tall in it. The opportunities that are for me do not require me to shrink.
21. I am doing myself a disservice when I don’t charge what I’m worth.

Self-Love Lessons:

22. My worth is not rooted in my ability or inability to achieve or be productive.
23. Loving myself out loud is not being cocky, conceited or arrogant. I don’t have to have to dumb down the love I have for myself to make others comfortable.
24. There are seasons for everything in life and when seasons end, it’s okay to grieve it’s ending and still understand that the next season awaits me. There is beauty in releasing and letting go of what doesn’t serve me even if I’ll miss it.
25. Forgiveness includes forgiving myself. 

I’ve been through a lot and these are a few gems I grabbed along the way. As I continue to grow, life will teach me a whole lot more. Here is also a list of books that have helped me on my path. Feel free to comment on the lessons that resonated with you the most!

Until next time,

Kee