Rule No.2: Be So Interesting They Think You're Fictional

I turn 22 tomorrow and I have no idea what I'm going to do with the rest of my life ... but I know how I'm gonna live it.

Do you ever feel like you've been dropped into the plot of a novel written by someone who gets off on excel spreadsheets and listens exclusively to royalty-free violin covers? When I find myself slipping into this ever-familiar pit of tedium, I often think back on something one of my sisters said: "If you were reading a book, and the main character was you, what would you want her to do?"

Close your eyes and think of your favorite book character. Got it? Great. Now imagine how dull their story would be if they were too scared to buckle up and LIVE. If Jo March married for money, Elle Woods worked in retail, Tris went abnegation, if Belly chose ✨summer✨ over Conrad or Jeremiah.

It's a horrifying thought, and these are fictional characters! As the one and only author of your own life, you need to start holding yourself to the same standard. 

Ever since I adopted this practice, I have actually been told that my life is reminiscent of a book character's, unprompted and many times. I'm constantly thrown into stranger-than-fiction scenarios, and am allergic to saying no. 

For example...

  • While doing gig work on film sets, my tolerance for insanity was tested constantly. I drove through Times Square in a sprinter van filled with giant camera men yelling at the other cars, I aided in the construction of a TJ Maxx while wearing full PPE, and I was expected to operate a stick shift forklift (no, I am not forklift certified) to move around MILLION dollar boats.
  • "Hey, my brother's roommate just died of natural causes, are you still looking for an apartment?" - An actual conversation I just had with a coworker. I politely declined because I am very happily settled into a condo with my two 60 year old roommates, Seth and Sally.

    • On my first week of the new job, I signed up to film a drag race - not the kind with cars. This consisted of very inebriated drag queens doing an obstacle course in the streets. I networked a ton and am now pretty established in the drag community.
    While these examples are extreme, this philosophy can also be applied to the little things in life, like getting your hair wet when you swim, wearing something slightly ridiculous, not canceling first dates. 
    That idea that's been sitting in your notes app? Do it. Badly if you have to. Just start. Fear of judgement is setting us back decades, it's time we bring back being WEIRD. 

    Sitting here on the last day of being 21, I feel like I should be freaking out about the passage of time and getting old, but I'm not. I'm not worried about missing out on life - because I'm the one writing the plot, and I refuse to be a side character. 

    The next time we talk, I'll be 22, and we'll be discussing a very grave matter, Rule No.3: Ghost or be Ghosted - There is No in Between. Stay tuned for my personal analysis on ghosting culture, as both the constant victim and perpetrator. 

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