A year that wasn’t transformational and I didn’t make any life-changing decisions, but it was still full of lessons nevertheless.

1. You can’t expect your dreams and goals to just come true someday because you always thought they would. Unless you have a plan and take steps towards achieving your dream, it won’t come true.

2. Having a high tolerance for alcohol is not a flex. Not enjoying drinking or having a low tolerance for it is nothing to feel embarrassed about.

3. Life is too short to not be the first one to text.

4. Do more of the things that feed your soul. For me, that is reading books, writing, going to new places, and learning a language.

5. Yes, success and money and focusing on your goals can bring happiness. Yes, working on your dreams and passions can bring happiness. But if you don’t have a circle of loving people around you, that happiness will quickly turn into an empty loneliness.

6. Have an emergency fund. No matter how tempting it is to spend all your money on an apple product or branded bags and cosmetics, that money in your account will bring you peace of mind.

7. They don’t change. Learn your lesson after you’ve been burnt twice, if not the first time. Not letting go of a person just puts salt on your wound again and again and hinders your healing process.

8. Just because you’re young doesn’t mean you can get away with treating your body like crap. You need to learn to eat well, drink more water, and exercise. The bad effects of your lifestyle start showing sooner than you think.

9. Stop paying for courses when you know you won’t follow through with them. Instead, sit and tweak your methods. Find a different way, one that’ll realistically work for you.

10. Don’t expect someone to know how you feel. While you’re seething and frustrated, they’re oblivious. Tell them. Communicate.

11. If doing something will boost your self-esteem (like buying expensive clothes, jewellery or putting on makeup), do it even if it’s considered superficial by others.

12. Stand your ground. If what you want to do does not cause another person harm, go ahead and do it. Your parents, elders, or friends do not always know the best for you.

13. Be helpful. Especially if it does not eat into a huge chunk of your time, be helpful to friends, acquaintances and even strangers.

14. Don’t be jealous if it’s not your dream. People on Instagram and LinkedIn will be doing ten thousand amazing things all the time. Is it even your goal or desire? If not, then stop feeling insecure and jealous.

15. When you’re on the road or in crowded places, be alert. Ditch the earphones. Our environments are too chaotic to not be careful, especially if you’re a clumsy person.

16. The right person doesn’t make you choose them over someone else. The right person helps you find a balance in your relationships.

17. As an adult, traveling is the best way to break the mundanity of life. Invest more in travelling and plan ahead for trips.

18. Show up for the important moments like marriages and birthdays (and sad ones as well) even if you’re not as close anymore or it isn’t the most convenient thing. You don’t want to regret it someday.

19. Sometimes, it’s not a wonderful thing. It’s the bare minimum. You just haven’t experienced bare minimum before so it feels wonderful.

20. Do not delay dental treatments.

21. Birthday sadness hits everyone. It’s inevitable. So plan a bit in advance and surround yourself with the right people and in the right environment on that day.

22. Deal with your procrastination habit. It was okay to study the night before an exam in school, but translate that to adult life and you don’t have the same energy levels and the opportunities missed are greater.

23. Don’t let yourself or others put you into categories and stereotypes. You can be an artist and wealthy, logical and emotional – you decide the cocktail that you are.

24. Never, ever stop writing.