*Warning: f-bombs dropped below! 

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Seriously. What’s with all the conformity?

Oh, the girl or guy didn’t like you? You didn’t get the job you interviewed for? You drink more than you told your doctor that you do? You’re not as good at that one thing as you thought you would be?

Look, I’m just going to cut through the bullshit and get to it.

Life lesson no. 1: We’re all fucking weird, and we all suck at things.

I know, you think you’re the weirdest human. No one has experienced the world the way you have; I’m not debating that. I’m just saying that you are not the only one. Let it go.

Life Lesson no. 2: Who the fuck cares if you’re “weird”?

Okay, so you like something different. What’s next?

The year is 2020 and we literally accept everything. You do you. Be whoever the fuck you want to be and be it, unabashedly.

Oh, you’re worried that your high school buddy or your racist uncle will judge you for living your best life? What the fuck difference does it make to gain “approval?”

Life lesson no. 3: If you own your shit, people are a whole lot more forgiving.

I know you don’t want to admit to whatever it is that you’ve done—your mistakes and pitfalls, your differences. I get it; I’ve been there. I also know that the only time I’ve ever felt free was when I came clean. So, cut the shit.

Life lesson no. 4: Standards are arbitrary.

Where does embarrassment even come from? I don’t know; do you?

Why is weird, “weird?” Why is it embarrassing to like or not like certain things, or to uphold or not uphold certain standards that the people you were raised by decided were appropriate?

Embracing our differences shouldn’t be and isn’t embarrassing.

Maybe you disagree with your parents or your grandparents or your coworkers or peers. But in the case of your elders, you also have access to more information and a wider perspective than generations before you. If people can’t get with you—really accept you just as you are—love them for what they’ve given you and let them go.

Life lesson no. 5: Those other people aren’t God (The Universe, Messiah—whatever you believe in).

Are you God? I know I’m not. Most people I know would probably say they aren’t either. So what makes you feel like your opinion is the end-all-be-all on what anyone else should do, or say, or think, or like?

None of us is in a position to judge anyone else.

What’s weird about liking sex or girls or boys or “kinky” things? What’s the deal with being liberal or conservative? What’s so unacceptable about living with strangers, not having that much money, or not having your dream job at a certain age?

What’s embarrassing about getting yourself involved in that sticky situation, not graduating college because you were a few credits short, or having loved someone with your whole being only for them to not love you back?

Why does any or all of that equate to so-called failure, or (get this) what’s so bad about failing at all—about simply not being good at something?

Life lesson no. 6: Shame is just a societal concept.

You tried. You do not always need to succeed.

You are not “God.” Neither is anyone else. You are not perfect, and no one expects you to be. So, chill.

Shame is created and designed to dim your light and keep you down. Own your shit. Shine bright and be whoever the fuck you are. You are worth it. The world needs you.

My concluding lesson? The world is a fucking wacky place.

If all you can be is kind (hello, it’s free), be that. If you can be more, be that too. But above all, be a good human, no matter what life throws your way.

There are no prerequisites or requirements in this thing called life. Get fuckin’ weird.