it’s just.

here is the best advice I can give.

never trust your perceptions of the world.

always challenge them. never believe that your opinions are set. on anything, and I mean politics and religion and life, but I also mean small things like what you like to eat or read or watch.

know what you want and know what you enjoy, but never believe that those things are set in stone. earlier this year, I didn’t like fish, or tofu, or Star Wars, or Russian literature. two years ago I hated Herman Melville. at every point I thought that these were just parts of my personality, things that had no reason to change.

but I was always always open to changing my mind. to eating fish anyway. to giving the franchise another chance. to trying to read the book again.

can you imagine anything more terrifying than remaining static as a person? than forming your opinions at twenty-five and never changing them?

so when I found myself in another country and my friend said, here is a plate of fried tofu and here is fish curry, and here is this, and here is this, do you want it, I know you don’t like–I said no. I said forget what I like, forget what I don’t like. I’ll try it.

when I saw that the movie cast was diverse I said, okay, I will try this one more time. when I had the opportunity to go see a play based on Tolstoy, I jumped at the chance. you’re never going to grow by sitting still or traveling in the same grooves over and over.

I’ve spoken about how I get bored easy and end up doing odd things to get myself out of it, but sometimes I also get bored with myself, I don’t see the point in never changing. I never want to say no to the thing that will open up my world. I don’t enjoy hating things, I always want more things to love, to fall in love with, to change me.

I don’t always love everything I try, but I’m never sorry that I tried.

so try everything once. as Stephen Colbert says, say yes. listen to people who think differently from you, try things you think you’ll hate. take opportunities. push yourself. never trust your own perceptions, always be ready to change your mind.

you may find something you needed, in new places.