Most of us have thought about how if we could go back in time we’d tell our younger selves so many things. Maybe it would be to share some wisdom on love, school, career, family, or all of the above. I know in many ways I’d have a lot to share with my younger self. Sadly in reality we can’t do that. We can’t go back in time and share our hindsight knowledge. However, we can, in some small way, do the reverse. We can think of our younger selves, at age 5, 10, 14, 18 and think about what they’d share with us.

Our 5 year old selves, in many ways, were our most authentic selves. We didn’t care that much about what others thought of us, we hadn’t enforced very many self-limiting beliefs on ourselves, we were bold and had no issues having a full-fledged meltdown if we were tired or hungry. If we were disappointed or frustrated with you, you knew. If we loved you dearly, you knew. We learn to restrain and control a lot of these feelings, both good and bad, as we grow older. Obviously this is necessary in many ways, but not always. As we grow older we also begin to care a lot about what others think of us. We begin to implement self-limiting beliefs and grow very cautious. We begin to subscribe to this very narrow view of what success and fulfillment entails. We begin to lose our free-spirited, authentic self. In no way do I want us to all start behaving like our 5 year old selves, but I do want us to start taking advice from them.

We’ve had many versions of ourselves over the years. As we grow older we tend to become wiser (hopefully). However as we grow older we also become more cautious. We give up on dreams and ambitions we had because we realize how silly they were. But the question is, were they really that silly? We tend to achieve the more obvious goals such as get a job, get married, have kids, etc. But we tend to fall short on the more adventurous and optimistic goals. Travelling the world, climbing Mount Everest, becoming a scuba diver, writing a book, becoming a singer, being happy, etc. It’s these exact things that our younger selves were much more likely to try if given the opportunity. Our 5 year old self couldn’t actually climb Mount Everest, but we could and would climb a really big hill and pretend it was Mount Everest. We would put on a snorkel in the lake and explore, imagining we were hundreds of feet deep in the ocean. We would write short stories even if they made no sense, we would force our parents to watch us perform the newest backstreet boys or spice girls song, we would laugh until we cried… or peed our pants.

As children we would allow ourselves to imagine, to act out fantasies in whatever way was possible. As we grow older, we don’t allow ourselves to imagine as much, and we rarely act out our fantasies. Sure we can’t all be world-class travellers, climb Mount Everest, or become famous popstars, but we can, as we would when we were younger, act out a more realistic version of those things. We could plan to explore a new city, or travel to a new country every few years. We could climb easier mountains that only take a day or two. We could start performing at open mic night at a local venue, or start a band with some friends. We need to stop giving up on things that make us happy when we imagine doing them, because they’re “unrealistic”. We need to start acting more like our younger selves and seek out a realistic way to find fulfillment for our big dreams. We don’t need to give up on the dream, we just have to make it more plausible, because in the end, the feeling of satisfaction is the same.

I think it’s important from time to time to reflect on the wisdom of our youth and learn from it. We need to care less about what others think of us, and do more of what makes us truly happy. What creative ideas would your younger self come up with, and how can you do more of that yourself, today? Below are some of the self-reflection questions I asked myself when writing this post. I ended up with some pretty cool ideas and answers. I’ve included my answers to the questions assuming my 5 year old self is asking. Try answering the same questions over again but being asked by yourself at different ages. You’ll also end up with some pretty cool ideas and answers.

What would I be shocked to learn about myself?

That I ended up being gay, because I didn’t really have any idea what that meant when I was really young. Although it would have explained a lot of things.

What this teaches me:
– There are always new things to discover about yourself.

What advice would my childhood self tell me?

Try to be friends with more people, you should never stop trying to meet cool people.
         What this teaches me:
– Look for what connects you with others, there are so many wonderful people out there
– Surround yourself with people who encourage your imagination.
– Being social is a driving force in my personality and I should continue to nourish that.

Walk, talk, defend (I starting taking karate lessons at age 5). If someone is trying to fight you, at first try walk away and ignore them. If that doesn’t work talk to them about it, let them know how you feel. If all else fails defend yourself, but because you’re an adult maybe don’t physically fight them.
      What this teaches me:
– Learn to address issues that bother you. Speak up for yourself and let others know that they have hurt you or are upsetting you.                 Only by doing that can you really let go and move on.
– Most situations don’t have to end up in a fight. Talking through issues as they come up is the most effective way to deal with them.
– Defending yourself doesn’t mean hurting someone else.

 You should hang out with your Papa (Grandpa) more often, he was your best play buddy.
  What this teaches me:
– He is a lot cooler than you and there is so much you could learn from him. He won’t be around forever.
– As a person he is someone I really look to as a role model and idolize. He has, and continues to, teach me a lot about what is                       important in life, how to treat others, and most importantly how to have a good time.

Would I be proud of who I’ve become? In what ways would I be disappointed?

I think overall I would be proud of who I’ve become. Although I’m not a professional soccer player, I do still play a lot of sports and find pleasure in them. I’d be happy to know that I’m still very silly, sassy and love to play, that I am kind to others and still look out for my little brothers while still managing to make fun of them.
What this teaches me:
– Overall I’m on the right track, and am happy with who I am as a person. I would be disappointed that I haven’t been as adventurous           as I had dreamed I would be.

What this teaches me:
– Stop dreaming and start doing. You have a long bucket list that isn’t going to complete itself.
– I might not climb Mount Everest, but I could very well climb Mt Kilimanjaro if I trained.
– I might not be able to travel the world all at once, but I can travel to most countries one at a time – Currently I’m at 11.
– You love exploring, so do more of it.

What would your childhood self say?