Be a kid

One of the best pieces of advice I ever got was from my wise friend Spencer when we were 17. Even though this was 15 years ago, I still remember it to this day. Spencer and I played football together and became really close friends during high school. He was wise beyond his years and was always the voice of reason.

One day after practice, I was rushing out of the locker room to go home to do homework and I was really stressed out. I tried to storm out of the locker room as fast as I could while all my teammates were hanging out. Spencer stopped me and told me that I “needed to be a kid for once”.

While this may not be a surprise to those who knew me back then, I was very uptight, stressed and anxious as a teenager. My dad’s always working mentality really rubbed off on me and I always felt the pressure of the world.

Spencer’s advice was exactly what I needed to hear at the time and I still go back to that advice today despite being in my adult years. There are some moments that we’ll never get back again in life. Being a locker room with my friends after football practice is one of those moments that I wish I relished more instead of storming home to do homework.

Life shouldn’t be all that serious. While homework and work may be important, sometimes we all need to channel our inner kid and just enjoy life.