In the social media world, you see hundreds of articles and blog
posts telling you what to do during your 20s. Thought Catalog posts
articles like these daily with titles like "Winning Your 20s," while
BuzzFeed has innumerable lists of things 20 year olds "must do."
After about the hundredth article, it hit me: I don't need a stranger’s blog to tell me how I should be experiencing this period of my life. Some of these bloggers are 20 somethings themselves, projecting their experiences and passions onto others in hopes that they will have similar experiences. Others are older, lending a retrospective approach to what they would do differently.
All of these authors forget the piece of advice that is central
to their article: self-discovery. How are young people supposed to discover
themselves if articles are constantly telling them how they should be feeling and experiencing? Being berated by blogs and tweets and articles about how to
live your life can make you lose your sense of freedom to experience it for
yourself.
Maybe taking a risk and living in a different country is a
defining moment of your 20s. Or maybe deciding to go out with friends instead
of studying will be a lesson you'll remember. Or maybe simply sitting alone in
your apartment with the window open and listening to sounds from the streets
will be an "aha" moment.
The operative word in all these scenarios is you. You decide what
things you will do and which passions you will follow. These decisions will
lead to unique experiences that are yours and yours alone. Self-discovery is
what your 20s are all about. So instead of reading hundreds of articles telling
you what you should feel and experience, take a step back to figure it out for
yourself.
