Non-Career Advice: Lisa Przystup.

Non-Career Advice is a series that asks people - young, old, and in a range of occupations - for words of wisdom unrelated to work, career-building, dollars, or getting ahead.

Name: Lisa Przystup / Florist 

Also: Writer / early riser / hopeless romantic

Age: Mid thirties

Don't fake it — you'll still make it. "The most important lesson I've learned is not to compare myself to others — and to be perfectly honest with you, it's something I have to constantly remind myself. The struggle is real. I mean this in every area across the board: style, looks, the way your body is, noticing what other people are achieving. I'm a writer in addition to being a florist, so by nature, I'm curious about other people's experiences. I've talked to so many creatives I admire who tell me they feel the same way — it's hard to look at Instagram and social media and not think, why don't I have that? Or, maybe I'm not doing enough. A photographer friend recently said to me, "I do that, too" — and I thought, you? It was surprising. It was heartening. 

At the end of the day, your life is your life. There's no point trying to make it look like someone else's. It's like clothing: if you're wearing something you're comfortable in, that's going to come across, and vice versa. It's the same thing. When you're trying to be someone else, people can tell. You can feel it, too, and it's exhausting. So try not to listen to that junior high schooler in you who wants to be like everyone else, and just do what you do, the best you can do it. That's how we develop strong personal identities. You can't force it — but confidence gets easier as you get older. In the meantime, just look down at your own two feet. You'll get there."

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Thanks so much, Lisa. More from the Non-Career Advice series, here. Photo by Shanita Sims.