I’ve received lots of good advice in all twelve years of my life, so I’m not sure what the best piece is. Because of this, I’ve decided to list the top five bits of advice I’ve been given, with number one being the best and number five being the worst of the top five. Read on to find out who gave me great advice and what it is!

#5: “If you wanna make new friends, you have to put yourself out there.” -Christina

My younger sister is right: while you definitely could just sit there and wait for someone to come and be your friend, it’s much quicker and more dependable to go out and talk to people. Really “put yourself out there” to make new friends.

#4: “Always eat at least a little of everything on your plate.” -Grandma/Mum/Gma Judy

This advice was given to me as a toddler to get me to eat vegetables before desert, but it really is true – you never know you don’t like it until you try. I listened to the advice, and now I’m not afraid to try anything food-related! (Well, except for bugs – but they’re a whole different story.)

#3: “If you have a specific talent, continue to use it and work on it so you can turn that talent into skill.” -Dad

This is definitely one of the best pieces of advice I’ve received. After all, talent only goes so far, but skill can be taken even farther if you improve upon it. You can have much more control over skill than talent, after all.

#2: “If you think something is inconvenient or tedious, find a way to improve it.” -Dad/Mr. Livingston

If you find something to be a certain way, chances are other people think so, too. There’s always a solution if you only look for it, so be innovative and find a way around it!

#1: “Always tell the truth.” -Pretty Much Everyone I Know

Here we are, finally at the number one piece of advice I’ve been given! Telling the truth can actually keep you out of trouble most of the time, and it definitely makes you feel good as well. Once, a teacher of mine said he had knew a guy who was supposed to be on guard duty at a certain place and time, but he went to the back and took a nap. Afterward, he was asked about it, and he told the truth when he easily could have lied about it. Was he fired? No – and why was that? The company’s main rule was “tell the truth”, so he was allowed to continue working there.

So those are the top five pieces of advice I’ve received. I probably could have made it ten instead, but I don’t want to bore you too much. Thanks for reading! (If you really liked this, look out for more Top Five posts!)