Above all, always believe that _you_can_do_it_. Anything you set your mind to- it may take awhile, but keep at it & believe in yourself- regardless of what _anyone_- even so-called experts may have to say negative. When you want to go & do something, know that others who have found success at doing something similar, were one day as inexperienced as you might be now. Just try to learn as much as you can- take the good & leave the bad, and have at it as best as you can. Seek out those who can help you, surround yourself with these people- remove negative people from your circle of influencers, and give it your best. Actively do good, & passively fight evil. Make an effort to learn from your mistakes, and remember- god favors someone who puts in good effort, whose heart is in the right place. Don't let yourself get unbalanced, keep pets around you to constantly remind you of what it is to care about someone/something who's not you. Think about what it means to keep them happy, & put forth great effort to have a good relationship with them, they'll always love you, no matter if you're up or down. Be careful not to put all your faith in one person/group of people, they have the capacity/likelyhood to turn on you when the time is right for them. But don't be afraid to ask for help- _everyone_ needs help at one point or another, whether they let you know it or not. And even if you don't believe in god, pray anyway- it does something in our minds that's good for us. Science proves it, believing in something abstract helps our subconscious somehow that science has yet to explain. Look for ways to be an optimist, it'll help you far more than you could imagine. It's very hard sometimes to find the light side of darkness, but it's always there. Even if you have to repeatedly talk to yourself in order to feel a sliver of gratitude for something as mundane as being priveleged enough to not live in a third world country, or a war torn region, that little feeling of gratitude, even if you only feel it for a fraction of a second, has the power to grow in your subconscious and carry you through tough times that will certainly arise. If you can get in the habit of finding something to be grateful for, your subconscious will do some invisible magic & pop up and help you one day when you need it most. Someone like 'mouselover' will post on HN & ask a question that forces you to remind yourself what works for you at a time when you've almost forgotten it yourself.