“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma-which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

Listening to other people’s opinions are important. But you should not allow it to take over your life. I always thought that I had controlled my own life, and I knew how to make decisions on my own. But when I realized that when my friends and family would give me advice, I would be stuck. Their advice made sense and I know that they cared about me. But sometimes I couldn’t get their voices out of my head. Everything inside me seemed to yearn for their approval. I hated disappointing others, and most of all I hated letting others down. 

I did so many things to please other people. All of the times, it was mostly academics or what not. But I started to understand that things could get dangerous, if I kept giving into what others wanted for me.

The important thing to remember is don’t live for other’s people’s approval. Live life for something that only you truly want to become or do. When you repeatedly yearn for approval or trying to please others, you’re not living your own life, you’re becoming a puppet. 

It’s hard to change, and I am trying to look at myself differently. To appreciate myself instead of asking others to appreciate me. It’s hard sometimes, but if I really want to get to where I want to go in life, then I’ll need to start relying on myself more often than others.