5 Things I would
have told my
teenage self
5 pearls of wisdom Alyssa would tell herself with a time-turner!
LET'S TAKE A TRIP BACK IN TIME FOR ALYSSA'S TOP TIPS FOR SUCCESS AND POSITIVITY
Ohhh if we could turn back time and share the pearls of wisdom we have learned and picked up over the years with our younger selves, would it have made a difference? Would we have listened to our older, wiser versions of ourselves? Now I have had my first child, it has got me thinking… what do I want her to grow up knowing? What knowledge will I share with her? Probably the same knowledge my own mum shared with me, but, do we listen? Our teenage selves always know best…but did we really?
Here are 5 things I would tell my younger self if I had a time turner! Love, life, work… if you have some impressionable youngsters, I’d love you to share these little words of positivity with them!
1. Self Belief is one of the biggest tools you have to shape your own future.
We were all awkward teenagers to some extent weren’t we? Exploring our new bodies, new relationships, new subjects, strange places, new experiences and of course, ALL the ‘firsts’. It’s only natural to be unsure, and although I really was quite a driven teenager and knew what I wanted from life, I really could have done with believing in myself a little more and having the confidence to do the things I wanted to, and saying no to the things I didn’t want to do!
I was quite a shapable and impressionable teenager, and actually I knew this. I knew what I wanted in life but my self-belief was quite low: if I could go back in time I would tell myself that I absolutely SHOULD have believed in myself more, because everything I wanted back then? It really was achievable!2
2. Don’t wish away your carefree years!
One of the things I don’t have much of-and have never had much of-is patience! I’m quite a driven person and when I don’t achieve things quickly, I feel like it’s failure. When, in fact, the biggest thing to remember is that Rome wasn’t built in a day!
I really struggled at school as I was quite badly bullied as I was shy and a bit overweight. I wished away my school, college and teenage years and dreaded every day. I missed out on the school trips, holidays away with friends and sleepovers because of my anxiety, and if I could turn back time, I would have lived in the day a little more rather than wishing it all away- because being a grown up is quite difficult really, isn’t it!
3. It’s okay to try something and not like it
This option is way better than missing out full stop because you were too scared to try something new. This goes for so much – new hobbies, sports, after school clubs, foods, the list goes on! If I could speak to my teenage self I would always say it is better to try something and know you didn’t like it than always wondering if this was something you may actually enjoy, e.g girl’s football…. NOT drugs and smoking! That’s a big fat NO every time.
4. Being quiet doesn’t mean you are weak
I was quite a quiet teenager, which often got mistaken for weakness, meaning I was more than occasionally a target for bullying because I wouldn’t say much in return. A very sensitive child and teenager, I wasn’t like many of the ‘popular’ pupils and kept myself to myself. I was creative, quiet and intelligent and I always wished I was more like the loud, outgoing pupils who were surrounded by friends in the corridors at lunch time.
Looking back? I was exactly where I should have been- with a small circle of friends who had my back, and that’s really all I needed! And being quiet? Well, I was just absorbing what was going on around me and doing the best I could to do well at school- which paid off in the end. It is OKAY to be quiet!
5. Stick to YOUR passion and don’t be swayed!
I always knew I wanted to be a jeweller. I was about 5 when I knew, and I was already making and selling jewellery to friends and family by the age of 13 and 14. I was very driven, but so were my teachers.
As I was an A star English pupil, I was quite heavily persuaded into going down the route of university for English and journalism, and it took me quite a battle to put my foot down and say no- I think they thought my writing skills would be wasted, and making it as a business owner was a challenging pathway- thinking I was much better suited to something I was academically great at- but for me, it wasn’t the right path.
I ended up being swayed in the wrong direction and having to start again by going to art college after my A levels before moving onto a creative degree at university – it put me back a good few years in progress.
Going back in time? Well, I guess it’s hard to put your foot down when you are being persuaded to take career options but if you really ARE passionate about something and you know what you want to do with your life, then you should absolutely go for it! Because mark my words, if you are lucky enough to have fire in your belly and true passion about something when you are a teenager, then you should do everything you can to follow that dream! I will always tell my little girl to follow her dreams and aim for the moon!
