A LETTER TO MYSELF

Dear 16-year-old Shuo,

Firstly, RELAX. It's not the end of the world if you don't get 5's on your AP exams or if you never find an antidote for your shrimp allergy. It's also not the end of the world if you don't get enough 'propz' on your Xanga posts or if you decide to leave the swim team so there's more time studying for the SAT. Everything is going to be alright, and I mean EVERYTHING.

Enjoy the last few years of your adolescence. Study hard. Play hard. Make mistakes. Do not try to be perfect. Do not over-pluck your eyebrows (this one is super important). Do not believe what you tell yourself, that 'Life Sucks'. Instead, spend as much time as you can with friends. Watch more movies together and have fun picking them out at Blockbuster (they go bankrupt years later as virtually everything will be accessible on the internet, crazy right?). And lastly, do not go to the Korean salon Grace's mom suggests for doing your prom hair and make-up. You will look ridiculous. But nothing to truly stress about, how you look for prom won't make an ounce of difference in your long term life. Just remember to hang close with friends that really matter because two of them will still be your best friends a decade later.

After high school, you will attend Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. You've probably not heard of this school and it sounds a bit like college for people who love to eat melons, but I promise it's a wonderful school. You are not going to regret it. Plus, you will meet your future husband there and be shocked to hear that you actually ask HIM out... twice (you're insane)! During college, you will learn all sorts of things. You will learn to be independent. You will also learn that you can't do everything by yourself. You will have more confidence and be OKAY with public speaking. You will learn about leadership and compassion. Don't freak out if your GPA is horrendous after Freshman year. College is really challenging and you will make mistakes, but you will figure it out. You will graduate with Honors, but it won't be easy to achieve. Stay strong and don't be afraid to go to office hours. You will also drink lots of empty calories and dance your booty off every chance you can get. It sounds intimidating, but you will have a lot of fun with your girlfriends. Enjoy it while you can because you will be an old lady and lose all interest in going out after you turn 25.

At CMU, you will learn about this ginormous company called Procter & Gamble. Did you know P&G makes all type of consumer products from Pantene to Crest? Anyways, you will make use of your Chemistry degree and work for P&G right out of college. You will kick-ass on the interviews and get a job offer before your final semester at CMU. Take the offer and don't look back! You will meet some incredible people through the company who will be life long friends, your biggest supporters in life.

After the excitement of working for P&G wears off, you will become a bit lost. Four years into your corporate career, you will make the boldest decision of your twenties. You will leave your job to pursue more. Lucky for you, you will have savings and the support of your family and friends. Mom and dad will without a doubt believe in you. You will also endure 7 years of long distance with the love of your life up to this point. People will think you're crazy, but it's actually not so bad. And during this time, you will rediscover who you are through all the ups and downs (there will be plenty of them). I'm happy to say that you will love the person you become. Don't fret if you feel insecure and not so confident with who you are right now, because that will all change with time and experiences. You will owe a lot of it to dating a humble man who has no care for what other people think of him. And whatever you do, DO NOT break up with him because he doesn't say 'I love you' right away. I promise you, he does love you and you have to trust him blindly for a few years (3 years to be exact). Think of it as a test. And remember, patience is a virtue.

Your man will propose to you in 2014, so don't let society pressure you to pressure him. I won't tell you exactly how or when it happens because it's important to him that you're surprised. And you will be really, really surprised. If you can remember to, try and pay attention to what he says before he asks for your hand in marriage. Though you will be so giddy with excitement that your mind blanks out. It's okay, he says something along the lines of wanting to make new memories with you, I think.

Together, you will turn your passion into purpose. You will be surprised to find that photography is going to be that passion. With wild abandon, you will work together to create a new business. You will be terrified initially and cry a lot for fear of failure. But you will realize that life is just a big experiment. You will proudly say to everyone 'Hashtag YOLO', you will figure out what that means later. You will come to understand that by fulfilling your internal life, it will transform your mentality and well-being. You will learn to become more comfortable with pain, setbacks, and the unknown. You will realize that being comfortable with pain is not the same as suffering. As difficult as it may be to understand, these are the hard moments where you will find breakthrough, where you will find happiness. Remember when you overcame your fear of water by teaching yourself how to swim? There will be many moments like that in your life. The best part of creating a new business is you will go on this incredible new adventure with your best friend. With him, the world will feel limitless. And though I don't know how our life will turn out, I think we'll be okay in the end.

Be brave. Stay humble. And save your crop tops.

Love,
26-year-old Shuo