1. You can do or be anything you want but you have to make it happen yourself. While people may help you or hinder you from time to time, what you make of your life is your own responsibility.
2. You can only be as happy as you allow yourself to be. The same goes for misery.
3. Set goals. Have vision.
4. Whining will get you no where.
5. Honesty is the best policy but sometimes you need to know when to shut up.
6. Not everyone values honesty.
7. Money can’t buy happiness but it can alleviate misery. Share the wealth.
8. In all things that are worthy, persevere.
9. Learn to cook at least three dishes really well. Learn to cook your favorite food.
10. Be nice to restaurant servers. Their jobs are not easy and they control the food you are going to eat.
11. Life isn’t fair. Make the most of it.
12. Sarcasm is encouraged.
13. Gratitude is required.
14. Be thankful for your tragedies, they teach you more than anything else ever could.
15. Your life will not turn out how you planned.
16. This is a good thing.
17. Be careful what you ask for in case you get it.
18. A great friend is someone you can do anything or nothing with and have a good time.
19. Even good friends will hurt you from time to time. You should forgive them this fault as long as it doesn’t become a habit. Sometimes you should neither forgive nor forget but should just move on.
20. Not all friendships are worth saving. Recognize the ones that aren’t.
21. Not all friends will be there for you in the bad times. There are different kinds of friendships. Accept all of them for what they are.
22. To have friends you have to be a friend. Cliché but true.
23. You don’t always have to keep score. Sometimes the fun is in participating.
24. Money is a lousy way of keeping score.
25. You control your emotions or they control you.
26. It is okay to be angry or sad or hurt or happy or glad or excited.
27. It’s okay to cry.
28. Vote.
29. Travel as much as possible.
30. Over time, passion and novelty fade. Be sure there is something else behind every relationship.
31. Two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different. It doesn’t make one completely right and one completely wrong.
32. While everyone is entitled to their opinion, however uninformed, it doesn’t make everyone right. Research, intuition, and consideration must always come into play when making a judgment.
33. Trust but verify.
34. Not everyone can or should be trusted.
35. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. You can never get something for nothing.
36. Sometimes it is good to be different and unique. Sometimes it isn’t.
37. Don’t wallow in misery. It will get you nowhere.
38. You always have choices.
39. Sometimes the most ordinary moments are the ones you will remember best.
40. Accept that you can not change other people.
41. Nerds, dorks, and geeks rule the world. Never forget this.
42. Figure out who you want to be then go out and be that person every day.
43. Confidence is power.
44. Few people can resist a man on a mission.
45. Learn something new every day – no matter how small.
46. Don’t be selfish with your knowledge.
47. You have about three seconds to make a good first impression.
48. Learn to say no with conviction and yes with enthusiasm.
49. Be consistent.
50. Don’t try to impress. It is a lot of work and rarely successful.
51. You can’t please everyone all of the time. Sometimes you can’t please them at all.
52. Things usually take longer than you expected.
53. Never regret. It only brews resentment. Instead, learn from your mistakes and move on.
54. Resentment will only destroy you. Confront whatever or whoever it is you resent and move on.
55. Try new things. You won’t like all of them and that’s okay.
56. Find a job or career you love. If you don’t find it right away, keep looking.
57. Don’t worry about what others think of you because they rarely do.
58. Agree to disagree.
59. Don’t save anything for a special occasion. Today is special enough.
60. Always over-prepare. No one will ever fault you for that.
61. Time heals just about everything.
62. Don’t tell everyone you meet your problems.
63. Remember that friends and family are the most important things in life.
64. Your children will get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
65. Envy and hatred are wastes of valuable time.
66. Spend a little. Save a little. Don’t do either to excess. Find a balance.
67. Appreciate the little things people do for you especially when they don’t have to do them.
68. “Dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go; be what you want to be because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.”
69. "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain
70. "Pleasure is very seldom found where it is sought. Our brightest blazes of gladness are commonly kindled by unexpected sparks." - Samuel Johnson
71. Learn how to swim.
72. Learn how to play at least one song on at least one musical instrument.
73. Learn a foreign language and use it so you don’t lose it.
74. Fear can be a great motivator.
75. A home and a house are not the same thing.
76. It’s important to have an opinion and equally important not to let that opinion be unwavering or to dictate who we are.
77. Wash your hands.
78. Be your own person.
79. Like who you are. If you don’t, figure out why and change it.
80. Don’t let other people change you.
81. Be happy. If you aren’t, figure out why and change it.
82. When you most want to talk… listen instead.
83. To truly see something extraordinary, view something ordinary through the eyes of a child.
84. Laugh a little each and every day.
85. Never underestimate your influence in someone’s life.
86. Never over-estimate it either.
87. When something seems too hard or insurmountable, break it down into smaller pieces and just get those done one at a time.
88. Think about the long term.
89. Do not procrastinate. There is no benefit in this.
90. Occasionally indulge your vices but never let them rule your life.
91. Have fun.
92. Be curious.
93. Allow yourself some willing suspension of disbelief from time to time.
94. Use sunscreen. Lots of it. All of the time.
95. Take care of your teeth.
96. Never try to be cute. It generally comes off as just annoying.
97. You are never lost if you have a map. Learn how to read one.
98. Job titles mean nothing. Better to be respected for the job you perform and the diligence with which you do so.
99. Find at least one piece of art and one song you can truly appreciate.
100. Ask questions.
101. If you don’t understand, ask more questions.
102. If you still don’t understand, find another source.
103. Respect your elders. Learn from them.
104. Learn to laugh at yourself regardless of what the joke might be.
105. Don’t buy into the lie that beauty is on the inside and outer beauty doesn’t matter. Everyone will judge you at one time or another. You just have to decide how their judgment will affect the way you live your life.
106. Never be passive-aggressive. It gets you no where and will annoy most everyone.
107. Perception is everything.
108. Develop a thick skin. You can’t survive the world without it.
109. Everything might happen for a reason but you won’t always know what it is. Sometimes you just have to stop looking for a reason and move on.
110. Never be afraid to change your opinion when new evidence is presented. To hold on to that old idea when confronted with a new reality is ignorant.
111. Rules are made to be broken. Sometimes.
112. Never assume you know the reasons behind someone’s actions or words or that you know what is going on in someone else’s life.
113. Learn the skills to be great in a job interview.
114. Own at least one thing in which you look and feel great.
115. You don’t have to be the best at everything you try. Sometimes the point is just to try.
116. Know your options.
117. You haven’t lived if you’ve never failed.
118. Pick your battles.
119. Don’t drink and drive. Don’t smoke. Don’t do drugs. Life is short enough without willfully and intentionally making it shorter.
120. Never say “I love you” if you don’t mean it.
121. Spend time with the people you love. They won’t be around forever.
122. Take pictures. One day your memory will fade.
123. If you have to question if you should be in a relationship, you probably shouldn’t.
124. Marriage is work. Really, if it were easy, would it be worth anything?
125. You don’t have to love your spouse’s faults but you do have to accept them.
126. Marry someone who you can be yourself with at all times. They will see you at your best and your worst.
127. Having a child is the hardest thing you can do to yourself. It is also the most exciting and rewarding.
128. There is nothing in the world as wonderful and awe-inspiring as a child. There is no sound as endearing as your own child’s laughter.
129. Learn from your parents. They are not perfect and that is okay.
130. Call your mom.
Edited to add: As we were eating dinner last night, a discussion with J produced the next life lesson that should be added to this list so I've decided to continually add additional lessons to this list here so I can keep up with them.
131. Sometimes the bad guy wins. Just keep rooting for the good guys.
132. You are going to have bad days sometimes, just try to make the next one a little better.
133. Get plenty of sleep.
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