Almost everyone has heard the saying "life's too short..." followed by whatever they believe they should do to live their life to the fullest. They quite possibly heard it from their wise grandparents, or a teacher they admired, or their best friend on a night out, or simply just from the song by Young The Giant. No matter where they heard it, they probably got a different ending to the sentence because every one has a unique way at viewing life.

Life's too short...
... to care what others think about you. BE CONFIDENT in who you are. This has such a close meaning to me. Growing up, I always cared way too much about what people thought of me, I always wondered what my reputation was and who was talking about me behind closed doors. It was to the point where I was butting into other peoples' business so I could find out what they thought of me, I became nosy and self-conscious.

In today's society, it's easy for a teenage girl to become self-conscious especially when everything in her eyes is a popularity contest. Well, looking back on my teenage self and remembering those times, I can truly say I missed out on a lot of opportunities because I was too busy caring what other people thought about me. Life is too short to care about those things because the only thing that matters is what you think about yourself.

Life's too short... worry about what brand name everyone is wearing. This might come off as rude or judgmental, but it's a generalized opinion about society. A lot of society worries way too much about the brand that's embroidered on their clothing. Yeah some of them might mean it's better quality and will last longer. I get that you can argue it's an investment because I make that argument with myself every time I shop.

I understand sometimes you can't help yourself with those Nike shoes, but it shouldn't be that if they don't own Nike shoes then they're out of the loop. Life is too short to be checking everyone's tag to see what brand name they're wearing because when you grow up, you'll wonder why you spent money you didn't have to something that you never wear anymore.

Life's too short... NOT travel. When I ask people what's on their bucket list, I often hear, "travel the world." Traveling the world is expensive, but it's exhilarating. The experiences you get, the people you meet, the food you eat, the architecture you see -- it all is worth every penny. We all know that traveling is expensive, but if it's something you desire so much that you want to do before you die, then I suggest you get that second job, you save your money, and you plan those trips.

Even if you're not a traveler or someone who likes traveling, the one thing you can always do is explore. Exploring places like your hometown is an option or exploring a new museum. There are always options out there to see the world and travel in your own way because life is way too short to not experience other cultures.

Life's too short... love secretly. This one should be self-explanatory. Love is such a strong word, but when you put that much passion into something like a relationship or a project, it becomes ten times more important to you. Love is not a word that should be thrown around, but it's a word that should be used when you feel it. Let someone know when you love them; let the world know when your so passionate about something you're absolutely in love with it. Also, love like there is no tomorrow because life is too short to love secretly.

Life's too short... wake up late. I understand that some people have a routine of going to bed late and waking up late, and good for them for having a routine. But do you know how much sunlight you are wasting if you wake up at noon everyday? That's at least five hours of sunlight if not more. Sunlight is good for your health, because it's easier to be outside when there is sunlight. Also, waking up earlier in the day means you have time to get yourself ready for your day.

You can make yourself breakfast, have a cup of hot coffee, have quiet time, read your favorite book, get an early work out in, make your bed and so much more. You have endless opportunities when you start your day at a decent time and end your day at a decent time as well; it creates a healthy way of living and much more.

Life's too short...
...stress over the small things. I was reminded of this recently, during a mock interview in one of my labs, my professor noticed we were all a little stressed out. He then reminded us that it wasn't for a grade so we needed to relax. We each took a deep breath and carried on with the interview. After everyone was done going, he sat us down and told us a story.

He reminisced on his past work experience and went into detail about each and everything that stressed him out during work. It was the deadlines, the constant customer service, the 80-hour work weeks, constantly missing his family, and so much more. Many of those were reasons he switched careers and started working as a professor. He told us it was not because everything with his job was too overwhelming and that he couldn't handle it, but because the amount of stress he put on himself was overwhelming and he needed to be reminded every day not to stress about things as much as he did.

His little lesson he was trying to teach us that day was, life is too short to stress about things. Now for most people it's hard to not be stressed out over things, especially if it's a decision that's going to change your life or those around you. Stress is a part of life, but stressing over the small things, like sitting in traffic or how your hair looks on a rainy day, isn't worth it.

In all reality, life is too short to know when it's going to end, so live it to the fullest and end that sentence with how you uniquely view life.