29 things

Twenty-nine things to help navigate our messy, fun 20s:

1. Eat your greens, protein, and fruits daily. Eat that chocolate bar, too.

2. Drink two cups of tea daily. One in the morning to awaken your senses, and another in the afternoon to soothe your mind.

3. Sleep for eight hours every night.

4. Move. If possible, walk 10,000 steps daily.

5. Take care of your skin with the best suited cleanser, toner, moisturizer, and sunblock.

6. Wear clothes and shoes that fit you well.

7. When you’re feeling sad, catch the sunset to remind you of life’s sweetness. When you’re feeling hopeless, catch the sunrise to remind you of life’s progress.

8. Discover at least one thing you enjoy doing with your hands—paint, draw, write, cook, build, play an instrument.

9. Take the time to know yourself. Spend at least an hour of solitude with yourself every day.

10. Take a deep breath when you’re feeling stressed to release the tension. Take a deep breath when you’re feeling euphoric to soak in the moment.

11. Work to live. Fill the rest of your time with deepening relationships, creating something, or going on adventures.

12. Muster the courage to reach out to people you admire and want to emulate. If they say no, you will still have learned what courage feels like.

13. Know the difference between lifestyle aspirations and basic necessities.

14. Meet your basic needs. Make room for the occasional splurges.

15. Your time, energy, willpower, and attention are limited resources. Choose wisely where to invest them.

16. There are only three things you can control: what you think, what you say, what you do.

17. Be clear with your intentions. It will help you say no to things that do not align—whether that’s choosing a club to join, staying in or leaving a relationship, partying or staying home, persisting in your job or jumping ship.

18. When you feel stuck, seek advice from people you trust or want to be like, meet someone new, or do something for the first time.

19. Grow and maintain relationships with people who want to support you. Reciprocate.

20. When you don’t like a situation or a person, there are three options you can take: accept and learn something new, influence change, or walk away completely.

21. Express your thoughts and feelings. People who care for you will make space for you to say them.

22. Apologize when you’re wrong. Apologize when you hurt someone even if you think you did nothing wrong.

23. Make people who are important to you feel appreciated, loved, and cared for.

24. Help others when you can.

25. Respect everyone. More importantly, respect yourself first.

26. Perfection is an illusion. Strive for excellence in areas that matter to you.

27. Beginnings are both exciting and difficult. Persist through the initial friction and be mindful whether you are moving toward the right direction.

28. There is merit in going slow at times. Slow down so you can allow the right people and right opportunities to catch up.

29. Learn from bad experiences and take stock of the good ones.

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Karla Caraan, 29, is a product designer.