“Maintain your optimism: don’t let the toxicity of your environment—a college major you don’t love, competitive friends, petty coworkers, etc etc—take it away from you. It is one of your defining qualities. *Learn to say no—and don’t be afraid to speak up: if you don’t speak up for yourself, you can’t expect others to pipe up for you. Be braver. *Be better with money. Really. You’ll need it when you move back to NYC. *Say yes to adventure, to (calculated) risk, to possibilities. The latter is something I’ve learned in spades since eighteen, but especially in the last few years of my career. Taking every meeting, being open to new opportunities and not being shackled by unwarranted fear or hesitation. This life we lead is short and fleeting…Listen: eighteen feels like it was yesterday to me. I remember everything about it from my poor fashion decisions (haha) to my general cluelessness and the occasional waves of trepidation about what the future would bring. Today, I am eighteen + ten + then some. Time flies, really it does, so maximize every second. Live the best life you can—any limitations you have are self-imposed.”

– Eva Chen