10 lessons I’ve learned in my 35 years:

1. Change starts with every one of us
This is my motto and I think about it pretty much every day. If you don’t like something it is very likely in your power to change it. If not, perhaps it’s your attitude toward it that has to change.

2. Savour Life

We are the generation that is always running, literally and indirectly, without time, without stopping to appreciate the moment, especially the simplest and nicest moments. I love sunsets and sunrises, and my neighbour makes nice pictures of them from the place where I live. I often scold myself for not taking the time to just sit and enjoy the beauty of the world around me. Simple moments like this I believe need to be appreciated, as do the many people around you, those who seek the shadows as well as those who seek the spotlight.

3. Find a Way, Not an Excuse

You’ll always find people who will tell you how much can go wrong, negative people who will tell you that what you want is impossible, or is too hard. Taking that kind of advice to heart is the coward’s way out. By all mean, listen to advice – good, bad, or indifferent – but take responsibility for the final decision yourself.

4. You can’t please everyone

Some people like me, some people are indifferent, and some dislike me, some may even hate me. If I spent my time trying to please everyone along that spectrum, I’d go mad. Well – even madder. When all is said and done, you have to live with yourself – and doing that with a clear conscience means being willing to look at yourself, to be honest about your sins and shortcomings, and work to correct them. Let others think what they will, I have more important things to do than worry about their negative thoughts of me, or what I’m doing.

5. Everything is Possible!

Ever since I arrived in the U.K. in 2006, I have lived following this motto. I believe all of us have the same opportunities and pretty much the same channels to take from life all we want. The difference is that some are willing to work for their dreams and are determined to do whatever it takes to give them the best chance of success. Others wait for the dream to just materialize from thin air, as if the universe owes them something. Lastly, there are those who live for payday and spend the week marking time until the weekend, when life begins and ends. To which of these groups would you say ‘Everything is Possible’ applies?
In which group are you?

6. The Future is not the past

Changes are inevitable. There is no point in following our predecessors by doing things exactly the same way as they used to. It is a new era, a new world and we need to adapt to it, especially in Moldova. It is important to start thinking multi-dimensionally, outside the box. It is important in my view to create your own life, write own book following real principles and values, not the stereotypes and prejudices of society.

7. Read and Grow!

As I mentioned earlier, advice in books has helped me solve many problems. But I don’t just read those related to the work of MAD-Aid and Phoenix; I read to be inspired, to acquire knowledge and fresh, challenging perspectives, as well as to just enjoy a good story!

8. Money is a Tool, Not a Measurement of Worth

Money is only an instrument, that’s all. Why are people killing for money, or running after it all the time? All that really matters in this life cannot be bought: health, love, happiness, time. From the moment learn to do what you love, and love what you do, the value of money is directly related to its ability to help you do it.

9. Mistakes: Your Best Friends in Disguise

An infant struggles to her feet, attempts her first step, and falls on her face. Wouldn’t a loving parent scoop her up in their arms and forbid her to try walking again for fear she might get hurt? Of course not. Each time she tries, she’ll correct a mistake she’s learned from. In no time, she’ll be running! Mistakes are common to every human endeavor, and the only way to avoid them is never do anything. Understanding this helps us to be more forgiving of others – and ourselves – and turns mistakes, and the people who make them, into blessings in our lives. A thick catalog of errors is something we, as human beings, all have in common. Some teach us what to do, some what not to do, but each will either teach us how to fly, how to land, or how get up and get on with it.

10. Expect the unexpected.

When I was talking about doors opening when you least expect it, I have to remember that this can go either way. You will hear often, “live your every day as if it were your last, because one day it will be”.