Hello guys! So I recently celebrated my 23th birthday and I took some time to reflect on the past years. I happen to be a little bit of a thinker so I thought a lot about how I have changed throughout the years and how far I've come in terms of following my dreams and being happy to just be me.

And here are the 23 things I have learned in my life so far. Hope it will be interesting for you to read these and that they will inspire you or teach you something. Enjoy!

#1 Smile. Always smile. It makes everything better.

#2 This quote by Dr. Seuss — 'Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.' is just so true.

#3 Whenever you're sad or confused just look at this. This is happiness: http://imgur.com/gallery/I1TBl29

#4 'It is not happy people who are thankful. It is thankful people who are happy.' !

#5 Kindness is the best gift you can give to anyone. Spread it freely.

#6 Life is too short to not do what you want or not chase your dreams. Any minute you waste is a wasted chance to be happier.

#7 The best moments in your live will probably not be in photos because you'll be too busy having fun.

#8 If you're lucky enough to find a true friend, cherish that person/those people and never let them go, they're your treasure.

#9 The sooner you stop caring about pleasing people, the better.

#10 A good laugh and a hug can heal anything and instantly make you feel better.

#11 You are never too old for cartoons, jumping around when you're happy and openly talking about even the smallest things that excite you and you genuinely care about.

#12 You don't need to be perfect to be happy, look at all the people you love with all your heart and how their imprefections don't matter to you.

#13 It's totally fine if your brain is '99% quotes and lyrics'. You're probably a great and fun person to talk to.

#14 Things are not always what you expect them to be. So this is a list of only 14 things, not 23 although I said so. Life often surprises you and you should always expect the unexpected. Hopefully it'll be a good surprise.

So thank you for reading. :) I hope you found something you liked and will remember. Now I wanna hear your favorite quotes and inspiring statements in the comments below! :)

- Nicole