5 Life Lessons I Learned From My Mom

“Mama looked into me and saw something worth believing in, long before I believed in myself” – Keion Jackson

It’s Mother’s Day! Here are 5 life lessons I learned from my best friend who also just happens to be my mom.

Lesson #1: Talk Less, Listen More

When it comes to unfamiliar situations, my mom has taught me to talk less and listen more.  By doing this, we can be in tune with what the topic of conversation is and when to interject into said conversation.

I can be awkward initially when interacting with new groups of people and sometimes I tend to talk more and listen less because I feel like I should sound like I know what’s going on with the topic of conversation. But in actuality, I don’t have a single clue what I’m talking about. It’s kind of like I go into “word vomit mode” which is not the best.

Over time I’ve seen how beneficial talking less and listening more is. When I am unfamiliar with the topic of conversation, I am educated on it just by listening to people who are more experienced and familiar.

Lesson #2: Kill People With Kindness

There are some people that you will come across in this lifetime that will push ever last one of your buttons without a care in the world. The best way to handle these difficult people is to kill them with kindness and not let them get to you.

In past experiences, I would usually take this advice with a grain of salt which would in turn backfire and kick me in the behind by killing me first.  But these past few months, I’ve really taken this piece of mom’s advice seriously and surely enough it actually worked-ish.

When people push all my buttons, my reaction was always very negative. It was like fire playing with fire. It ignited this flame inside of me that should never be lit. I would get so upset sometimes that I would end up shaking with rage. That rage would then turn into tears due to how upset I was.

This type of reaction is never healthy for oneself.

My solution to this ordeal is stepping away from said ordeal, confide in my mom to cool off and when stepping back in, I keep to myself and act as if the ordeal never affected me. I do this by killing the other person with kindness. I am polite but firm and assertive.

You’d be amazed at how the difficult people will slowly but surely turn around and in turn, they won’t phase you like they did before.

Lesson #3: Don’t Take No For An Answer

When people tell you “No” or reject you from an opportunity, don’t let that bring you down. Use it as an opportunity to prove them wrong.

There have been more rejections than I would have liked in my 22 years of life. But my mom has shown and taught me never to give up on myself and to always show people that I am here for the right reasons, all without sacrificing my values and morals that she instilled in me.

Lesson #4: Nobody Will Help Someone That Doesn’t Want To Help Themselves

I am one of the most stubborn people you might ever come across. I have no shame in admitting that. So growing up, you could say I was quite a handful.

If I had a dollar for everytime my mom told my stubborn self that “nobody will help someone that doesn’t want to help themselves”, I could pay for my college tuition without any aid from anyone.

I have my own way of doing things and I like to keep it that way. I can be one track minded at times. But there are situations where an alternative route is necessary. Do I initially take people’s (by people I mean mom) alternative options? Of course not! Do I eventually use her option in then end? Yep.

What this lesson means is that it is a waste of someone’s time and energy to help them if they clearly aren’t asking for help. People have other things in life to use their time and energy on. So if someone offers to help, take that opportunity. It might save you a lot of time in the future.

Lesson #5: Where There Is A Will, There Is A Way

For as long as I can I remember, my mom had and still does have a solution for pretty much everything. For example, packing and unpacking for anything is like a game of Tetris. I have no idea how she does it.

Nothing is ever impossible. The word itself says “I’m Possible”

I’ve applied this piece of mom’s advice in regards to academics.

Academics has never been easy for me but this semester, I was going to turn things around for the better. If I really really apply myself, I can get the grades that I want and can be proud of.

It actually worked. My final grades this semester were the best they had ever been.

 

I am who am because of my mom. For that, I am forever grateful. What can I say except for “I got it from my mama”

What life lessons have you taken away from your mom? If you yourself are a mom, what life lessons do you hope your children will take away from you? Let me know in the comments below!