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Things People Wish They Knew When They Were 19-Years-Old

Two young women and one young man in line at a cafeteria
woman in red and white jacket beside man in gray crew neck t-shirt
Photo by Alex Lujan on Unsplash

Reddit user poppcurn asked: 'What’s something you wish you knew when you were 19?'

19, the last of our teenage years.

At this age, many people begin their higher education and begin to seriously contemplate how they plan to spend their adult years.


Some people have already begun living their adult lives at this age, children and all.

Of course, no matter your circumstances at this very tender age, everyone will still learn a lot about themselves in the following years.

Sometimes learning a lesson fairly late in life that they wish they had learned much earlier.

Ideally, when they were 19.

Redditor poppcurn was curious to hear the things people wish they had known at the age of 19, leading them to ask:

"What’s something you wish you knew when you were 19?"

There's A Reason They Say Older And Wiser.

"I wish I listened to my grandma about the importance of stretching daily and wearing ear plugs when needed."- heyyoriky

Young Love... Not Always Forever...

"It's okay to leave that relationship."

"Life continues forward, and you'll have more time to get to know yourself."- Jump4lyfe

Time Is Easier To Waste Than We Think...

"Time slips away faster than you can imagine."

"I wish I'd known the real value of those early years."- Ace0851

Clock Tick Tock GIF by MOODMANGiphy

Just One Thing?

"Save your money."

"Try harder in school."

"Do not waste any more time on people that don’t have your best interest."

"It doesn’t always get better and not everything is always worth it so choose wisely."- Old-Masterpiece-8428

If At First You Don't Succeed...

"I wish I knew at 19 that failure isn’t end of the world.. and it’s just part of the process."

"I spent too much time stressing about getting everything right, whether it was school, work, or relationship."

"If I’d known back then that messing up is how you grow, I would’ve been a lot kinder to myself."- luxelotus_

Among Many Other Things

"Drugs are addictive."- ratraceinsurgent

Love Is Worth The Wait

"That getting married at 19 is an extremely bad idea."- weird-oh

Time And Effort Doesn't Go Unnoticed

"Dress better."

"It makes you feel better when you make an effort."

"And people really do notice."- locustpole77

Looking Good Feeling Myself GIF by CBSGiphy

True Friends Make Themselves Known

"Those people aren’t your friends."- ThrowItOut43

Only Please People Who Will Also Please You!

"People pleasing is a terrible habit when you’re a 19-year-old girl, and the people you’re trying to please are 19-year-old boys."- midwest13princess

Far Too Many People Need This Reminder

"That I’m enough."- Significant_King1494

When In Doubt, Keep Your Eyes Open...

"Not to trust people blindly."- turzo333

Sometimes We Set Our Own Traps

"Establish healthy routines now."

"Bad habits are harder to break as you get older."- ExtensionSpecial1138

We All Make Mistakes

"Do not marry him."- butterglitter

The Tiniest Seed Could Grow A Massive Tree

"Invest your f*cking money."- Electronic-Ice-2788

Invest Wall Street GIF by xponentialdesignGiphy

When we're 19, with a new decade of life just around the corner, we tend to forget that we truly do have our whole lives ahead of us.

Perhaps the most valuable lesson every 19-year-old should be taught.

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