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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Albany chapter.

In May, I will be entering my 20’s. I’m officially not a teenager anymore. I’m walking into the real “real world” if I haven’t already. It’s time for adulthood. This is your second decade of living, so you should take each day as a learning opportunity.Some people think “oh, age is just a number” or “it’s just another year” but to me, it’s deeper than that. Every year, we get older, we get wiser, and we get a chance to reflect. Turning 20 years old is a wake-up call. Time truly moves fast and it’s something we can never get back, so from now on, we really need to make the best out of everything. My teenage years personally have been a legitimate rollercoaster. There were highs and there definitely were some obstacles. I can only imagine what my 20’s have in store for me.

I’m nervous, yet excited for my 20’s. In my opinion, this is the age where making moves is EXTRA important if it wasn’t before. It’s the wake-up call that you can’t sit at home and expect a handout for your whole life. You’re grown now, and it’s time for you to go and get yours. Everyone around you wants to be successful, so that means you have to go harder than them to reach the top.

Your 20’s should be the time where you look at yourself in the mirror and say “this is the real level up, the real boss up, the real glow”. What does that mean? It means it may definitely be a time where you have to get real selfish. It’s all about you. As Kyoko Escamilla said “your 20’s are your “selfish” years. It’s a decade to immerse yourself in every single thing possible. Be selfish with your time, and all the aspects of you. Tinker with sh*t, travel, explore, love a lot, love a little, and never touch the ground.” Entering your 20’s, like Escamilla is saying, is the chance to do all the stuff you thought you couldn’t do, or all the stuff you’ve always wanted to do. Enjoy life! It’s the time that you can really find yourself if you haven’t already. It’s like “damn, this is my life.” That can have a negative connotation or a positive one, but it’s what you make out of it. This is the time to make the most out of everything that comes your way.

Your 20’s are the time to make yourself happy if you haven’t already been doing so, and make sure that whatever you’re doing is benefiting you. Your 20’s are the time to experience different things, to figure out what you like versus what you don’t like, and to explore and understand who you are. If you’re dating, enjoy the relationship, help it grow and flourish, but if you’re not, let a relationship wait. Dating is always going to be around! You have your whole life to do so. And honestly, things don’t change. The same situations/problems you deal with in relationships throughout your teenage years are the same situations/problems you’ll be deal with when you get older.

I saw a post on Twitter that said the “key to your 20’s is to move on. Move on from jobs you hate, old friends that ain’t sh*t, bad relationships and bad situations” (@TheRealTraeG) and I agreed with it 100%. We are not kids anymore, and we should not enter our adulthoods unhappy or uncomfortable. All old situations need to be “deaded” as I like to say. “Issa dub.” We all have goals and plans set for ourselves and we should not let anyone or anything get in my way or stop us, so if that means major changes have to be made, then so be it. Friendships/relationships that don’t seem to be progressing can go. Why hold on to people who clearly don’t seem to care for you in the capacity that you care for them? These people don’t check for you but when they see you doing well, they flock. Don’t settle! Do not let that fly in your 20’s. If they didn’t know you then? Don’t let them get to know you now that they see you doing good. Walk away from jobs you hate, definitely. You can’t be a cashier or sales clerk for the rest of my life. Yes, money is lovely, but saying  “thank you, have a good day” forever isn’t. Why would you want to work for the company when you can own it?

Let your 20’s bring you nothing but prosperity, growth, and great vibes. And don’t give people the chance to interrupt whatever you have going for yourself. Your 20’s are for you and they’re all about you.

 

Selfish.

Selfish.

Selfish.

 

 

“Your twenties is the time to experience different things to figure out what you like. I feel like your twenties is when you figure out a blueprint for the rest of your life. You get to figure out sh*t.” – Ari T.

 

Ayanna currently attends the University at Albany, SUNY. She has a major in English and a double minor in Sociology and Africana studies. She's a firm believer in positivity, self-love and working towards her dreams. She's all about positive vibes and positive energy. You can follow her on Twitter & Instagram @ayannaSZN. 
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Ashanti Dunn

Albany '18

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