2014-03-11, 04:36 AM
Yeah, it is a wide topic.
I guess I'll concentrate on the "no idea what sort of backup you'll have in the future."
(Although, your parents are still both your parents, even if they get divorced. Some people actually "gain", in a material sense, from having two homes and two families to call on).
A good thing to do is to try and become as self-reliant as you can. Not talking outback survivalist who can live off the land indefinitely, but let's call it "urban survival skills". How to do some cooking, laundry, first aid, basic home and car maintenance. Learning your way around common bureaucracy, your country's medical system, social security, driver licencing, income taxes. Try to think about everything you currently rely on your parents to do for you, and learn how to do it yourself. That's useful to anyone, especially if university for you means living away from home.
And, well, money... Never too early to start saving up. Never too early to get experience, a resume, recommendations.
But not at the expense of your schoolwork. Keep studying as much as you need to, to keep your grades up. And don't skimp on sleep, either.
This might all sound daunting if you've been as spoiled as my son ("Mom, I need you to wash me a spoon for my cereal..."), so I'm going to conclude by saying: relax. You'll be fine.
(And if it all sounds trivial because you've had all these skills for years, cool. You certainly have nothing to worry about in the backup regard.)
Edit: As for my 16-year-old self... hmm... I'd tell myself to take better care of my health (with specifics). Probably wouldn't listen, just as I didn't listen to my mother when she'd nag me, but it's worth a try.
Also would tell myself not to register for the course my father wanted me to, in university. I ended up wasting a year (which my parents paid for, but still) and then switching to the course I wanted after failing a class.
I guess I'll concentrate on the "no idea what sort of backup you'll have in the future."
(Although, your parents are still both your parents, even if they get divorced. Some people actually "gain", in a material sense, from having two homes and two families to call on).
A good thing to do is to try and become as self-reliant as you can. Not talking outback survivalist who can live off the land indefinitely, but let's call it "urban survival skills". How to do some cooking, laundry, first aid, basic home and car maintenance. Learning your way around common bureaucracy, your country's medical system, social security, driver licencing, income taxes. Try to think about everything you currently rely on your parents to do for you, and learn how to do it yourself. That's useful to anyone, especially if university for you means living away from home.
And, well, money... Never too early to start saving up. Never too early to get experience, a resume, recommendations.
But not at the expense of your schoolwork. Keep studying as much as you need to, to keep your grades up. And don't skimp on sleep, either.
This might all sound daunting if you've been as spoiled as my son ("Mom, I need you to wash me a spoon for my cereal..."), so I'm going to conclude by saying: relax. You'll be fine.
(And if it all sounds trivial because you've had all these skills for years, cool. You certainly have nothing to worry about in the backup regard.)
Edit: As for my 16-year-old self... hmm... I'd tell myself to take better care of my health (with specifics). Probably wouldn't listen, just as I didn't listen to my mother when she'd nag me, but it's worth a try.
Also would tell myself not to register for the course my father wanted me to, in university. I ended up wasting a year (which my parents paid for, but still) and then switching to the course I wanted after failing a class.