Read the book: «Three Things I’d Tell My Younger Self (E-Story)»
THREE THINGS I’D TELL MY YOUNGER SELF
Joanna Cannon and others
Copyright
The Borough Press
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers 2018
Copyright © Joanna Cannon; Ignasi Agell; Sue Armstrong; Hannah Beckerman; Ann Bissell; Dr Sue Black; Fern Britton; Wendy Burn; Janice Cannon; Tracy Chevalier; Julie Cohen; Charlotte Cray; Dr John Crichton; Miranda Dickinson; Suzie Dooré; Janet Ellis; Nathan Filer; Patrick Gale; Sam Guglani, Dr Helen-Ann Hartley; Kerry Hudson; Mandy Huxley; Reverend Andrea Jones; Adam Kay; Erin Kelly; Mr Kipling; Dr Kate Lovett; Katy Mahood; Anna Mazzola; Lydia Elise Millen; Dame Helena Morrissey; Hannah O’Brien; Femi Oyebode; Lev Parikian; Nina Pottell; Jonathan and Andrea Scott; Anita Sethi; Lionel Shriver; Graeme Simsion; Dr Laura Varnam; Professor Kate Williams 2018
Cover design: Holly Macdonald © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2018
Cover photography © Shutterstock.com
The authors assert the moral right to be identified as the authors of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This book is a work of non-fiction based on the authors’ experiences.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Ebook Edition © AUGUST 2018 ISBN: 9780008318673
Version: 2018-11-12
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
Ignasi Agell
Sue Armstrong
Hannah Beckerman
Ann Bissell
Dr Sue Black
Fern Britton
Wendy Burn
Joanna Cannon
Janice Cannon
Tracy Chevalier
Julie Cohen
Charlotte Cray
Dr John Crichton
Miranda Dickinson
Suzie Dooré
Janet Ellis
Nathan Filer
Patrick Gale
Sam Guglani
Dr Helen-Ann Hartley
Kerry Hudson
Mandy Huxley
Reverend Andrea Jones
Adam Kay
Erin Kelly
Mr Kipling
Dr Kate Lovett
Katy Mahood
Anna Mazzola
Lydia Ellise Millen
Dame Helena Morrissey
Hannah O’Brien
Femi Oyebode
Lev Parikian
Nina Pottell
Jonathan and Angela Scott
Anita Sethi
Lionel Shriver
Graeme Simsion
Dr Laura Varnam
Professor Kate Williams
Keep Reading …
About the Publisher
Introduction
As authors, I think we always write about the ideas that fascinate us, the unanswered questions, life’s small mysteries, and my second novel, Three Things About Elsie, explores something I’ve often thought about: how the smallest decisions can make the biggest difference to our lives – and the lives of those around us.
A postcard about a first aid course, pinned in a newsagent’s window, led me to a degree in medicine. A chance tweet about a mentoring programme for writers began my journey to becoming a published author. Seemingly small moments which, further down the road, turned out to be very big moments indeed.
These moments not only change the direction of our lives, they also have the ability to change our very sense of who we are. The postcard didn’t just eventually take me to medical school, it gave me a chance to try something I’d always thought I wasn’t smart enough to do. The tweet I saw travelling through my timeline didn’t hand me a publishing contract, it handed me an opportunity to gather a little of my self-belief. Small moments which allowed me to rewrite my own story.
No matter how often we change our stories though, our past self is always contained within our older self, and I wondered what advice I would give the younger version of me, if I could travel back in time. The girl collecting her A-level results. The girl who pined for a boy who didn’t pine for her. The girl who stared at a postcard in a newsagent’s window. What three things would I tell my younger self, if I had the chance? I decided to ask the same question to the wisest people I know – people from many different backgrounds, whose stories, lives and friendships continue to inspire me – and their answers to that question are contained within these pages. Some of the responses made me laugh out loud, some of them moved me to tears, and quite a few managed to do a little of both. Everyone very generously gave their time and their words for free, and we released this to coincide with exam results day (when everyone could do with more than a little moral support!)
I hope you find their advice as brilliant and inspirational as I do, and who knows, you may find a small moment of your own, hidden away within the pages of this book.
Thank you so much for reading!
Joanna Cannon
IGNASI AGELL, CONSULTANT PSYCHIATRIST
1. On many occasions I have struggled between the yes’s and the no’s, and not always remembered a lesson from the past; that renewing your dreams is renewing your sorrows. A battle between light and darkness. My young self, I would tell to be curious; to live in the light of the dreams, because in darkness we can’t see our shadows; to be authentic to overcome those shadows; and don’t be a prisoner of your own opinions.
2. I was born with a club foot, to parents that were both deaf. I was always surprised when others asked how it was for me to have a bad foot, or to live with deaf parents, as for me this was my normal, my baseline. Later in life, other things happened; better or worse, and I learnt never to be defined by them, even when they became significant elements of my chronological life. We all appear to look for certainties in life, when our secret lives are made of little things. My young self I would tell not to be afraid and to become a gatherer of little instants.
3. Finally, to be kind.
SUE ARMSTRONG, LITERARY AGENT, C+W AGENCY
1. Please don’t allow shyness to get in the way. You miss out on some incredible opportunities to meet iconic people and do once-in-a-life-time things all because you felt too shy to step forward. Put that feeling in a box and go forth and conquer!
2. That friend you adore? Keep him close. It may be an impossible situation but try to find a way, because 20 years later you’ll still miss him.
3. Tips for uni: Jacob’s Cream Crackers are not diet biscuits; DO NOT let that woman cut you a fringe; and remember night-time is for sleeping, daytime is for working, not the other way around (#Insomnia).
HANNAH BECKERMAN, AUTHOR and JOURNALIST
1. You’re not the only one who feels the way you do
Everyone around you seems so happy, content, confident. They seem comfortable in their own skin in a way you don’t. You imagine that you’re the only person in the world who feels unhappy, depressed, unsure of herself. Trust me: you are not. Some people are just better at hiding their insecurities than you are. And you’re so adept at hiding yours that many people look at you and have no idea how you’re really feeling. But in time, you are going to find people to trust with these feelings. And even though they may never disappear altogether, you’ll find that their power over you lose its hold once you dare to acknowledge them, articulate them, and share them.
2. Ditch the friends who make you feel rubbish
There’s always one (or two, or three). Those friends who make you feel like you’re not worthwhile. The ones who make you feel ugly, stupid, unlovable, unloved. They make comments that are supposed to be funny but are actually belittling. When you tell them something good that’s happened to you, they’ve always done something better. In groups, they talk over you, steal your punchlines, make you feel invisible.
Ditch these people from your life. They’re not friends. Your only purpose in their lives is to help smother their own insecurities. Your time – your value – is too great for that.
Seek out people who are genuinely happy for your successes. Who listen when you need to talk. Who care about who you are and how you feel.
And when you find those people, hold on to them, treasure them. Because they will be your friends for life.
PS: This goes for partners too. And family. Just because someone’s related to you by blood or marriage, doesn’t mean you have to tolerate nonsense from them. You don’t have to tolerate it from anyone.
3. The race is long and, in the end, it’s only with yourself (Mary Schmidt)
You look around you and everyone seems to be doing better than you. They’re getting better exam results (apparently with no revision whatsoever). They are prettier, thinner, more popular, more successful. They’re luckier than you: opportunities seem to fall into their lap. In time they will have jobs, homes, holidays that seem so much more impressive than yours. In comparison you feel less successful and, consequently, less happy.
Comparing yourself to other people will never make you happy.
Run your own race.
Don’t just look above you, at people achieving more than you. Look around you; at your peers, at those who are aspiring to do things you’re doing, and perhaps you’ll see that you’re not doing too badly after all.
The race is long and, in the end, it’s only with yourself. In years to come, you are going to have this pinned above the desk where you write every day: both as a reminder that you are doing the thing you love and therefore it’s immaterial what anyone else is doing; and as an acknowledgement that the only person who needs to be happy with the race you’re running is you.
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