*Hi there! Super excited to have a guest post~ here on Ampersand. Just like how I love sharing cool new things with you, I love when people share awesome ideas/tips/events with me! Meet my friend Sam–blog enthusiast & fan of Ampersand. Y’all can read her blog, F-Perfection, here & throw her a follow on Insta here. 

This summer has been amazing. I’ve spent a ton of time with two of my closest friends, Haley and Kasia. We’ve frolicked through the streets of Philadelphia, obsessed over Friday Night Lights, conspired together to have the Universe shower us with good vibes and bonded over mozzarella sticks discussing the trials and tribulations of being a single, 20-something working in the communication industry. (Kasia here: RT all that–thank goodness for good friends).

It’s been inspiring to be surrounded by strong, like-minded women who have similar goals and ambitions but also are down to have a damn good time while we’re young.

My friends and I have a lot of life chats over sauvignon blanc. One thing we’ve found, as a common thread through all of these reckless nights out and life chats is that we believe in power moves. (More on that in a second.) Each of us, together and individually, are in the most earth-shatteringly exciting time in our lives. We’re making changes and figuring it out along the way, kind of weeding through the chaos blindly and taking life as it comes to us. But that’s what makes it so freaking awesome.

Kasia:  Not sure how, but we’ve started actually living by the motto “power moves only.” It’s something that we repeat in our group-text pretty much daily. We actually make a concerted effort to make power moves on a regular basis. Why? Because it’s fun. Because we’re young. And we usually have really good stories because of it.

As human beings, we’re wired to be cautious when it comes to doing things that scare us or could potentially hurt us. We’re overprotective creatures, especially when it comes to ourselves. Sometimes it takes some extra effort and time to learn that all it takes is a push in the right direction to step out of your comfort zone and do the scary things.

That’s when the fun begins, after all.

For those of us in our twenties, this super weird time in our lives is described by Internet memes as being kinda like playing a video game where you skip the tutorial and just sort of run around with no idea how anything works. We’re all sort of just guessing until we get it right. The beauty of it is that we’re ALL going to make mistakes. None of us really know what we’re doing. None of us know exactly the right choices to make for ourselves. You’ve just gotta do what feels right for you and your end game.

Which brings us to power moves.

Urban dictionary defines power moves as making decisions and carrying out plans to further your standing both socially and financially.

Ultimately, it’s doing what’s best for you and not giving a sh*t about what anyone thinks about it.

This is a hard lesson to learn. At some level, we all sort of care what people think. We’re people-pleasers and want to make sure those around us are happy.

Power moves can be big. Or they can be really, really small. It can be as big as quitting your day job to travel the world or as small as sending the risky drunk text because f*ck it.

Here are a few examples of power moves in the life of a 20-something:

• Kissing a guy or girl because you just plain want to
• Not kissing a guy or girl because you just plain DON’T want to
• Trying a new daring fashion/beauty trend
• Getting a haircut. Or chopping it off. Or dying it. Whatever.
• Having cold pizza for breakfast
• Going natural or make-up free and being proud of it
• Popping champagne for no legitimate reason (Kasia: although when is there NOT a legitimate reason for champagne?)
• Telling someone how you feel about them even if you’re scared of their reaction
• Doing something you’ve never done without worrying if you’ll fail
• Approaching a cute guy or girl at the bar
• Having rosé on a Wednesday evening
• Ignoring life responsibilities and treating yourself because self-care is important and you deserve it
• Wearing four inch heels around the city even if they hurt because they’re cute
• Drinking exclusively vodka sodas
• Changing careers because you’re following your heart
• Quitting your job to follow your passion
• Asking for what you know you deserve at work (and in life)
• Standing up for yourself against someone who treats you poorly
• Starting a blog and sharing deep personal stories about your life (Hey)
• Deleting dating apps because they’re stupid
• Downloading dating apps because they’re fun
• Going on two dates in one week
• Staying up until sunrise because you’re young and dumb
• Losing your voice because you got hot and stayed hot all weekend long
• Facebook friending the guy or girl you met at the bar even though you live in different cities

And so on.

Okay, so these may not be power moves for everybody. But they fit the definition, right? It’s about going after what you truly want. It’s about the repercussions becoming secondary. As long as you’re not putting yourself or anyone else in harm’s way, go for it. Don’t look back. Want ice cream for breakfast? Honor yourself and freaking do it.  Afraid of texting the stupid guy you’re obsessing over? Do it and it’s a power move.

These might seem like small things in the grand scheme of it all. In the life of a 20-something, these are the power moves that make all of the difference. At the end of the day, it’s about living your life, doing what makes you happy and not worrying about the what-if’s. It’s all about going with your gut in your 20’s. You’re going to make mistakes. But if you do, at least you’ll be going down making a power move.

What are some power moves you’re making? And could you be making more?

When in doubt, just remember this: PMO or GTFO. Power moves only, people. &. 

*Kasia again! Want to guest post on Ampersand? Shoot me an email– contactampersandblog@gmail.com.