Here is the next installment of things I have learned. Enjoy!
8. The internet is a fickle place. Working for a website that has an online forum has taught me this more than anything else. While you would like to think that everyone has the best of intentions when they make a comment in a topic on the forum, they really do not. You have to have a hard skin to deal with people when you have only ever met them online.
9. Living by the letter of the law is not always the right choice, sometimes, living by the spirit of the law turns out better in the long run. I learned this one while on my mission, and I'll never forget it. If you take every single law or principle of the gospel at blank face value then you are going to drive yourself crazy your entire life. Some of them are cut and dry, others are not. Learning how to tell the difference is what is important.
10. Children should not have televisions in their bedrooms while growing up. I know people who go both ways on this one, but I didn't have a TV in my bedroom until I was only a few weeks away from high school graduation. I really do think it was a benefit to me during my high school years, especially now that I find myself watching so much television as an adult.
11. Every driver should know how to drive a manual transmission. Not only does it make perfect sense for if you want to travel around the world and rent a car, but it makes you way more cool as well. If you know how to drive a stick you can spend less money on cars, gas, tow trucks, etc.
12. Everyone needs some alone time. Some people need it more often than others, some people need it hardly at all, but no matter what, everyone needs it at one point in their life, usually on a pretty regular basis. It doesn't mean that you hate people, or that you are being grumpy to your family, friends, or spouse, it just means that you need some time to yourself to think things through and have a few daydreams without anyone else to distract you.
13. Every person on earth has a different set of criteria for personal boundaries. Some people are fine with sharing every detail about their life, others are not. One of the best things you can learn to do in life is to learn how to gauge where that line is for the people you interact with on a regular basis. Not only will it help you avoid conflicts when you push a little too far, but it will help you know when something is wrong as well.
14. Journals are important. I don't keep one very well, but my wife does, and she can go back to see almost every single detail about her life that she wants to. If you don't like writing in a journal, find some other way to keep track of important events in life because trust me, some day you are going to miss them if you can't remember them.
15. Everyone should own a camera. Nowadays, it is pretty easy to take pictures and keep track of them with the arrival of the digital age and digital cameras. I may not like taking pictures, and I may not be very good at smiling for them, but sometimes I wish I had more pictures of things that happened in my life.
16. Learn how to stick to your guns. While there are times when giving in and letting things be done a way other than your way come around, there are also times when you have to stick it out to get what you want. It is a very fine line though, and a majority of people in the world tend to fight when they really shouldn't be. Stick up for the most important things, and the less important probably don't matter either way.
17. Don't be stupid. It's really that simple. Don't do stupid things, don't say stupid things, don't expect stupid things. I don't know if I can make it any more clear than that.
8 years ago
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