What Sophie Said

On 7 th July, I turned 23, and after an amazing week of enjoying my birthday, I’m feeling somewhat reflective.  I’m planning, I’m thinking, I’m sorting through my thoughts.  And whilst I process these thoughts, for today, here’s a list of some of the 23 ‘life lessons’ I feel I’ve learned over the last 23 years. 1. Real friendships take work, and effort to maintain. 2. Don’t be afraid to drift away from friendships that leave you feeling drained, or tired, or not valued. 3. You won’t always understand every decision those around you make… But if you care about them, support them. 4. Some people will have very different views to you on a whole range of things, and that’s ok. 5. The path that’s right for one person isn’t necessarily right for you. 6. It’s ok not to have absolutely everything figured out. Most people don’t. 7. Work hard. It will pay off in the end. 8. Making mistakes is fine, as long as you learn from them. 9. Alone ...

Today is Father’s Day, and I’m lucky enough to have a dad who I’m incredibly close to and has taught me an awful lot over the past 22 years! Here’s a round-up of the top five: 1. Friends are important. My dad is probably one of the most sociable people I’ve ever come across, and it’s definitely from him that I’ve learned to give everyone time, and really get to know them. He has so many close friends, some from school, from university, from various jobs, from playing sports… He’s always busy, always socialising, and having such a wide group of friends allows him to enjoy all the different things he loves, with great groups of people. 2. Listening has its place. Fitting in neatly with the friendship theme, my dad often finds himself in a bit of an ‘agony uncle’ position. There’s something about his open nature that lets people know they can trust him, and over the years friends have spoken to him for hours on end about all sorts of things, be it their health, family lives...

Those that know me know that 2014 was a year of huge changes for me. A lot can change in a year, and last year, for me, that was more true than ever. And so, as is the trend at this time of year, I've been reflecting back on what 2014 has taught me, as I get ready to try and make 2015 even better. Here are my 14 biggest lessons learned in 2014: 1. You can do a lot more than you thought you were capable of if you set your mind to it 2. You can be brave 3. Friends will continue to surprise you, both in good ways and in bad 4. You can move from a point where anxiety was stopping you doing everything, to a point where it's a part of your personality you're learning, slowly, to control 5. You really do feel better where you're putting good food into your body. So get on with it 6. Ditto exercise. Get a wriggle on 7. Continue talking to anyone and everyone. Everybody in this world has something to teach you 8. Sometimes taking the scariest steps can pay y...

At the beginning of our second year of university, Andy (my boyfriend) and I made the decision to move in together and commute to and from university. We settled on Darlington – a half hour train from each of our universities – and moved in at the beginning of September 2 years ago. Now, university is complete and we have temporarily moved home whilst we start to find our feet in the world of jobs, but two years of private renting has taught me a good few lessons. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made, but I’ve definitely learned some things for next time I leave home… British Gas and Sky will never, ever be on your side This was obviously the first time I’ve had to deal with bills, utilities and the like, and I was a bit unprepared for just how unhelpful the customer service departments at big companies can be. British Gas regularly tried to overcharge us, and when we moved out demanded an extra £200 that I knew we didn’t owe. Sure enough, about a month ago,...

So here it is, part 5 of my uni life series: the top ten things I’ve learnt over the last 3 years. The previous posts covered living in halls , friendship , holidays and the academic side . This post pulls together the whole experience as I look back over my time studying for my degree. Some are directly course-related, and some are larger life lessons that I’ll be taking away with me. Read widely This has always been a bit of a motto for me, English geek that I am, but my degree has taught me even more the value of reading. I have learnt so much from the pages of the novels we’ve studied, be they about different countries, experiences or time periods. Reading widely challenges you to ask questions, and that’s something we all need to do more of. Take the support on offer I remember sitting in the talks at the beginning of university and wondering why I’d ever need ‘welfare support’ or help from a supervisor for any more reason than filling in forms. But then your degree ...