As my high school career comes to an end, I find myself reflecting upon the past four years of my life. I’ve experienced many highs and lows throughout my high school journey, and I feel as though I wouldn’t be doing myself justice if I didn’t share a few of the things I’ve learned along the way. So without further ado, here’s some valuable advice from a graduating high school senior.

First off: hard work pays off. All throughout high school I was the stereotypical “studious student.”  I’ll admit, I may have cared about my schoolwork and studies a little bit too much, but my determination brought me tons of success. When the time came to apply to colleges, I remember a bunch of my peers saying “I wish I’d actually cared and tried harder,” as they freaked out after getting a glimpse of their transcript. I never once said that to myself, because I was proud of the grades that I saw on my transcript. I’m not saying that school and homework need to be your number one priority, but I do highly suggest taking pride in your school work. And if you’re worried about people thinking you’re a “nerd” for actually trying when it comes to school, just know that they’ll be regretting not following in your footsteps when colleges take a look at their grades. I promise, the hard work and dedication will all pay off the end. Just always remember to appreciate your education and to put your best effort into your schoolwork.

Second: remain open-minded. High school is the time of life when many individuals begin to think for themselves and develop their own opinions on certain matters. With that being said, it’s important, in fact, necessary, to be open minded. If someone has the opposing view from you on a particular issue, I strongly urge you to listen to what they have to say.  You don’t have to agree with what they bring to the table, but they deserve to be heard. And you never know, maybe someone can help you see the opposing side more clearly, or maybe your opinion will change after being enlightened by someone with a different viewpoint from yourself. Everyone sees things through a different lens, so be considerate and willing to listen to someone else’s train of thought.

And finally: friends will come and go. This is a concept that I struggled with for quite some time. I went into high school with a really close group of friends, but over the years, we drifted from one another. While I still deeply care for the friends that I entered high school with, we are most definitely not as close as we were during those first years of school, and that’s okay. Understand that it’s normal for people to outgrow each other. Some friendships are not meant to last forever.  However, you also have to understand that if you want a friendship to remain intact throughout all of the hardships, both parties must put in the required effort to keep the friendship alive. If one – or both – of you are not willing to put in the effort, then that just means the friendship has run its natural course. At the end of the day, some friendships are simply meant to teach you a lesson. Friendships that last a lifetime are hard to come by, but trust the process – you will find that one “forever friend,” and when you do, you’ll know.

These three tips are the ones that I found to be the most relatable and pertinent as I reflect on my past four years as a high schooler. With high school comes a lot of ups and downs, so I hope that whoever stumbles upon this article finds it helpful in one way or another. I wish you the best of luck throughout your high school career! These four years will be over before you know it, so enjoy them while you can.