Jelly Beans pt 2

Only read this if you’ve already read Jelly Beans pt 1. 

The is pt 2 of an article by guest writer, Karissa Wenner.

According to research done by Bonnie Ware, the most common regrets of dying people are:

5. I wish I had let myself be happier.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends

3. I wish I had the courage to express my feelings.

2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.

1. I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

Wow: I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

Let’s break this down.

The first part is much easier said than done: “I wish I had the courage…” Courage is something that can’t be taught, but is found within. It’s scary to break your comfort zone, but if you find a big enough reason to do so, you will also find the courage to overcome your fears.

The next part is also tricky: “…to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.” In order to accomplish this, you must truly know yourself and know the life you want for yourself.

Too often I see students studying something they don’t care about and people working jobs they hate simply because they are following the norm and doing what society deems ‘acceptable’.

I challenge you to think for yourself and figure out what truly makes you happy.

It’s that warm fuzzy feeling that you should be chasing no matter how unrealistic it may seem or how your peers might react.

Stop worrying about other people’s opinions! Everybody is guilty of it whether we admit it or not. Deep down everyone wants to be liked, loved and appreciated by other people and this affects our actions.

A mentor of mine once said, “I challenge you to invest time in yourself. I challenge you to get to a place where people don’t like you and don’t even bother you anymore. Why? Because you’re not concerned with making them happy, you’re not living your life for them, you’re living your life for you.”

I challenge you to do the same thing. Live your life for you, not in a selfish way, but in a way that makes you feel fulfilled: live a life that is true to yourself, not the life others expect from you.

Don’t waste your jellybeans.

* Ware, Bronnie. “”Five Regrets of the Dying” by Bronnie Ware.” “Five Regrets of the Dying” by Bronnie Ware. Hospice Patients Alliance, n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014. http://www.hospicepatients.org/five-regrets-of-the-dying-bronnie-ware.html