My birthday just recently passed in July, and now that I’m 23 years old, I have learned many things about myself. Things that I had no idea at the age of 22 for sure. But to shorten them down, I’ve come up with another listicle of the 23 things that I’ve learned at 23.

Here are my 23 things:

1) Being an adult involves being alone a lot. You have to get comfortable with it.

2) It’s okay if you are slowly becoming more and more independent.

3) Your friend circle will become smaller and smaller.

4) Not everyone is going to like you.

5) It’s not your job to make other people like you.

6) It’s best to build a relationship with your siblings now.

7) It’s okay if you don’t have everything planned out, but you should work on an outline of what you do want.

8) Try to spend more time with your grandparents when you can. You’re at that age where their health is declining, and you don’t know how much longer you have with them.

9) When drinking alcohol, a 23 year old body doesn’t bounce back from a night out drinking like a 21 year old body does.

10) What you eat influences your body a lot more now. Be more conscious of what you choose to put in it.

11) Try not to be so hard on yourself.

12) The daily reminders you set on your smartphone really do work.

13) Don’t be afraid to try new things.

14) You don’t need to buy every fashion trend at the mall.

15) Don’t be afraid to treat yourself every once in awhile.

16) You don’t need to go out to get coffee all the time. Brew it at home.

17) Start investing in good home decor for a future home.

18) Start saving money for a vacation you really want.

19) Invest time in people who deserve it.

20) Don’t beg people to stay in your life.

21) Everything works out in the end.

22) Take a step back to reevaluate the situation.

23) Focus on the smaller parts instead of the whole. If you look at the whole, you will overwhelm yourself.

Essays