I am a high school girl and an avid Netflix user, so naturally I’ve watched the two whole seasons of The Carrie Diaries. (For those of you who haven’t watched it, this show covers the teenage life of Carrie Bradshaw, prior to her role in Sex and the City. For some reason, my parents are only letting me watch The Carrie Diaries for now!) Not only is this show really cool because it takes place in the 80’s (hello, big hair), but it portrays a theme of female strength and importance of ambition. New York City is a busy place… It’s the city that never sleeps, after all! Carrie finds herself interning at a law office once a week in the city, an hour from her high school in Connecticut. My dad is a lawyer and offered me a similar position which I gladly took (although his practice is not in the fabulous New York, New York). 

Then, Carrie meets an employee of Interview, a fashion magazine, and she seizes the opportunity to intern for that company instead! 

Funnily enough, this past summer I got a job at a fashionable little boutique instead of working every day for my dad… So that practically makes me young Carrie Bradshaw! 

The main lesson I pulled from the show is how ambition and taking risks could benefit the future. Carrie skipped a full day of school to intern in the city. All high schoolers know if you miss one day, you could miss a fight, breakup, breakdown, or impromptu Beyoncé performance in the cafeteria. Plus, you’d miss your friends and some moderately important class notes. Carrie was not thinking how she could potentially miss out on the drama of high school, though. She was thinking long-term. She was thinking of what would benefit her future. 

I think most kids this age would choose to take the average route of just staying in school. We’ve lost that 80’s feminism drive of the importance of female careers, and with the current feminist ideals I do not agree with (that’s for another blog post), I do not think we’ll get that. 

Choosing to support yourself over anything else is a large part of confidence and discovering your own passions. Choosing what’s best for you and your future does not necessarily make you selfish. Carrie still made time for family and friends, but her main goal was to land her dream job in the city. She did everything she could (and then some) to achieve that.

We can all learn to think long-term. I read about the “5 by 5” rule on an Instagram post one time. The “5 by 5” rule means if it won’t affect you in 5 years, don’t spend 5 minutes worrying about it. 

In my life, I need to think if missing a mall shopping day with friends will really affect me in 5 years. (Spoiler: it won’t). 

What can you choose today that will benefit your future? What are your ambitions?
Tell me in the comments below!

xx,

k.c. 

Photo creds: We Heart It