avoiding "wasted youth"

[@caffeinatedbean8281]

The amount of emotions I felt reading "wasted youth"

[@SantanaBanana47]

Use them to push you forward, rather than hold you back.

[@ProfessorViral]

Hopefully this will help use them for something very positive!

[@chaoticspark2639]

youth is just one part of life its the time were u can say u have no idea wtf your doing while being an adult is hiding you have no idea wtf your doing ya sadly cant min max your life but hey just try ya best

[@Ririi17]

Same

[@astrosmithsin3153]

​@@chaoticspark2639yeah too bad I just did not do so many things earlier in my more youthful dsys

[@Official_MikeyT]

I believe that the reason why a lot of people worry about "wasting youth" is because until one both has access to their own money and is also of the legal age of majority, the glass ceiling of potential experiences can feel extremely low.

[@juggftw4868]

honestly i feel like youve hit the nail on the head with that one, but id like to add that for a lot of people even once they reach that milestone, while your potential options can skyrocket many often find themselves just as stuck as before, except now they fill their time with cleaning, working, and maintaining their body instead of hanging with friends and having fun

[@sideshowkazstuff3867]

Especially if you’re disabled. It feels like I’ve had a lot of extra limits on what I could do for a lot longer. The should do’s and need to do’s are so powerful people put off the want to do’s for so long that they aren’t something people know how to want anymore.

[@jarrodwalker997]

You need a DECENT amount of money too, and people to do things with, and the time to do them. It's hard to get all three down

[@JadeDragoness6]

Until you look back at 30 or 40 and realise you really have wasted your youth.

[@tsarbmb]

im 17 and i already felt like my youth was wasted. for different reasons of course but it feels like its moving too fast yk? sorry im high, kinda do this.

[@pokerface7973]

I’m 22f and I often fear that I’ve “lived my youth wrong” because “throughout school and university I’ve never partied, never dated or even had a crush, never kissed, never lost virginity, never got drunk etc” because it seems like “everyone is doing it, that’s what “living life to the fullest” seems to mean” But in reality, I never wanted anything from this list then, and I don’t want it now…I basically just compare myself to a “stereotypical teen” from tv-shows and worry that “there must be something wrong with me if I didn’t do all that as a teen and not interested even now” The only think I wanted when I was in school, is to go back home, watch anime, play games, practice drawing or some other hobbies, and sometimes go for a walk around historic part of the city with a friend The objective things that I actually wanted to change then, and what I was able to achieve in the last 1-2 years - is not being that anxious around other people, and being able to go anywhere and do things on my own, because I used to be terrified of going outside on my own. The idea of “JUST going out to buy groceries by myself, or going anywhere by myself, especially anywhere besides school” felt otherworldly and scary. I was scared to use the bus by myself, let alone subway (which was scary to me even when I wasn’t alone). At that time the idea of going to a doctor by myself- felt absolutely impossible. Now I feel much more peaceful than I did then, because not only the outside world stopped being so scary, I feel like I got rid of the obstacle that seemed indestructible, and I also got rid of my sense of shame for by not being so dependent on my family and friends. I feel like the world has “opened” for me. And just that is already feels like a great achievement for me, even though it might be considered “late” and “dumb thing to be proud of at my age” for many people. Unfortunately my main problem is still with me, which is anxiety. I constantly compare myself to everyone, especially people who aren’t even real, and that makes me insecure. And the reasons are extremely dumb. Like one time I saw a romantic anime where they had an IMPLIED sex scene between two 17-year olds, and my mind just went “oh no! I didn’t do anything like that when I was younger! I’m over 20 and still haven’t done it! Did I skip a developmental phase or something? Am I a freak?” and I felt so distressed that time that I can’t calmly watch or read barely any shojou since then (especially if I know that there’s intimate scene there…which everyone celebrates). And I feel so stupid getting so freaked out and insecure about something like this, when in reality I know that I didn’t do anything like that because 1)I never met anyone I would want to do it with, 2) I’m NOT interested, 3) I WASNT READY when I was a teen, and Im not ready now. It’s honestly ridiculous how I’m scared of wasting my youth by “not partying, dating etc”(read:”not doing things I don’t want to do”), while in reality I’m wasting my youth on being anxious about wasting my youth and “living the wrong way”(read:” fear being JUDGED and outcasted for not being NORMAL”)🤡 Like f you, anxiety! I don’t want sex, I want to fully enjoy the feeling of knowing that “I can go to the bakery and buy myself a donut I never tried before aaaany tiiime I waaant😚”

[@ArcNine9Angel]

Ads deleted my comment twice, so please at least know you're most definitely not alone, and it f***ing sucks, but it's okay. Don't be afraid of failure, don't let it stop you from trying, don't let it stop you from trying again. You're doing good, because you're better than you were. That's the most important thing we can decide for ourselves, and you're doing it. Wish you the best. From: a 31yr old who fought for a decade to just be functional for their own happier life.

[@ineedzemedic5810]

The small things in life like going to McDonald's at 3am and going by yourself just feels so damn good overcoming that anxiety

[@ZaylidinOfficial]

All I want to say is that I'm 27 and basically exactly the same as you. I've still not fully gained my own independance, but I am trying my best to grow and learn as an adult. A lot what you said about just wanting to go home and focus on hobbies, as well as the reaction to the sex scene, is something I can wholeheartedly relate to. The pressure of expectations from society can be absolutely soul destroying, but we can only truly compare ourselves to ourselves! I wish you all the best and I hope you can conquer your anxieties!!!

[@D-March]

To tell you the truth, you just have to focus on yourself. We all experience growth at different paces. It depends if we are ready to take the next step in life.

[@beangobernador]

bro what the hell is this a copypasta or something

[@alexmacdonald2000]

"What is special enough to become mundane, but still worthwhile?" What a beautiful question.

[@ProfessorViral]

I think about it a lot. I have very few things that have stood that test in my life. Maybe the only real one is this that I've been doing for so long, and a few friendships along the way

[@SantanaBanana47]

I find this is exercise or martial arts. I have spent so much time obstinately getting repetitions. I don't regret a single moment though. Without these 2 things I feel as though I am wasting my life. Also people to do these things with and compete with.

[@DaRealSkriblz]

rice

[@deathslayer1512]

the Self... right?

[@archivedaccount2000]

when you meditate it becomes almost all the mildly peaceful things. a house plant, sun on the a tree, calm conversation with your family, driving to the shop with your mama looking at the fields, trees in breezr, clouds revealing stars, skies and there subtlty, a bird flying, a fish's movement in a pond, wind noise, your own hands and their unique biology, seeing the morning, waving to your mama before u cycle to school. life is about perception . meditation and minimalism brings us back to better mind health and for me nature is infinite artistic inspiration. ofc with some exceptions, e g if u r schitzophrenic or trapped a slave

[@AceKite00]

You made this at the perfect time. For about the last few months, I've really been thinking about how little I've done in my life; Especially compared to others. For much of my life, I've been too scared of venturing out and making mistakes; So afraid of pain and change that I ended up developing my OWN pain in my stagnation. I even thought it was ok to just be an "observer" of the world. I may as well be dead with that mindset... But that comes to an end. From here out, I won't allow fear to control my life any longer. I'm going to find a way to do the things I've always wanted, regardless of whatever struggle or pain awaits me. I'm going to live.

[@ProfessorViral]

Just make sure you're still safe and stable when you do so. Without that port to launch from, there could never be an expedition. And its a slow process; don't worry if it takes starting slow and working up to what you want to do. But with that in mind, stay safe, and good luck; I hope it leads you somewhere you love

[@NateDoesYT]

I can feel the same way tbh. As a 17-year old, I was mostly raised by a single mother and haven't had a father figure in my life cause of family issues, pretty much my entire life I've avoided making friends and just going outside in general, it's gotten so bad that I basically don't want to venture out, make mistakes or even make friends in general as well as interacting with people in fear that I will encounter something that's not in my control or meet people that aren't friendly or situations that are horrifying, but at the same time, I've gotten used to it, and I feel rather peaceful, there is a line I believe between being "alone" and feeling "loneliness" and for me, am mostly "alone". One of the problems I am having sadly is that I am very dependent on my mother/family and in the far future, there's gonna be a time when I need to grow up and be independent, but for me, the world is scary, is big and is dark. I haven't even learnt how to drive, how to make my own foods (other than frozen foods) or even taking care of myself, I really do need some advice, and I just want to say Thank you, Ace and Professor for making your comments, they are very good comments.

[@chaiherobay9932]

Same. It sure is a painful realization. I've had to come to terms with the fact that due to wasted time I will NEVER be as well off as someone who actually started running when the starting gun was shot. I have always had ambitious goals/dreams, but always got caught up in the analysis of how to achieve them and whether I truly want what I think I want. Always ruminating. Life did not wait, and now that I am in my mid 30s I know I will likely have to temper some expectations and make some dreams more realistic which is painful...however its better than nothing so I'll try to make the bittersweet more sweet.

[@NateDoesYT]

@@chaiherobay9932 Thank you for telling your story man, I'm sorry what had happened to you and I hope that your doing well and that everything will be ok. Here's a simple quote I made that I hope can make you feel better "Sometimes when things happen to a individual, it will be horrible, painful even unfair at first, but one must look at their reflection and find themselves that without overcoming these same obstacles, you as a person would never have realized your own potential, your own strength, your own willpower, your own heart, your own life. so the road may be rough, save your tears for another day."

[@chaiherobay9932]

One thing at a time. May not seem like it, but at 17 you have alot of time to get things sorted out. Being alone is FAR better than being with 'friends' who are not good for you. Do not sacrifice who you are for companionship. Learn how to drive first. As far as cooking goes that can be stupidly easy. Just brown some meat in a pot, throw veggies in next, and then some spices. Most important thing IMO is trying to avoid processed foods, and if you have healthy food ready to go in your fridge already you will likely eat it instead of processed garbage. Also if you aren't lifting already I'd get in the gym and start with a simple program. World may seem scary and dark right now but as you get better things will get less scary.@@NateDoesYT

[@nadia3824]

This speaks to me so much. My lack of social skills has robbed me of so much and I just want to be able to experience those small moments with friends that most other people have as they grow up. It's heartbreaking hearing people talk about the things they did growing up that I never got to experience thanks to strict parents of the fear of doing anything new thanks to, again, strict parents. Its so hard working through the anxiety to do anything out of the ordinary but it's so so nice knowing it's such a common feeling.

[@mfz8580]

same with me too i barely got any friends and even if i got some they just consider me invisible. It feels so alone whenever i hear someone goes hangout with their friends or making friends so easily

[@cxssetteman182]

I relate to it as I was raised by a single mother. Growing up, I was conditioned to not cause trouble and be a good son. So I had to pass away on so many opportunities of having fun and making memories. Not that I didn't make any, but I definitely had to inhibit myself so that I don't make her worry. I just entered my late 20s now, and it's still not easy going thru life because of the way I grew up. What I can say is that make sure to have a blast within the limitations you have, while simultaneously trying to push the boundaries ever so slightly. It makes no sense to compare your life with others. You didn't live the same lives as them. You didn't go through the same hardships as them. Just live life at your own terms no matter how small they are. Try new things. Remember, that it's not the end. There are so many people who have given up their dreams, yet are still living a happy and fulfilling life. I've also met people who are living their dreams, but are so inherently sad and destroyed. It's all in the mindset, you can't control outside factors.

[@falcongamer58]

Strict parents + sheltering = stunted development and regrets

[@peaveejay2700]

...honestly, as long we don't betray one another, and then convince ourselves, "Maybe I should take advantage of this for my clout, doxxing seems justifiable." Only I didn't learn about my own parent getting taken advantage from her childhood or discovering twitter - which is a site capable of doxxing others.

[@falcongamer58]

@@peaveejay2700 what? If I read correctly, you thought it would be fun to dox people

[@Otinashi]

I'm 24 now and I feel more stuck than I ever have before. I feel like I wasted all the time I should have spent establishing myself and there's nowhere for me to go now. I'm young enough that I'm still seen as a "kid" by my elders, but I feel like I'm too many years behind people my own age to ever be able to compete. I spend every day drowning in "what ifs" mourning the years I wasted. I feel I missed so many experiences that should have guided my adult life. I'm sitting here now with no friends, no money, no college degree, unemployed with not enough experience to get any decent job in my field, but too much experience to throw it away and get a job I could've gotten as a 16 year old. I can't help but wish I could redo the past 6 years to finish college, make friends and maintain those friendships, maybe go to a couple parties, fool around, experience casual romance, and figure out where I'd be by now if I did everything better. I hear again and again that it gets better, but it never does. I feel like I missed the part where it was supposed to get better

[@AmitSer-kc7zf]

Hello iam 24 too

[@OokileyGMR]

I am a 23 year old guy, and I feel much like the same as you described. The only difference, perhaps, is that I still have that tiny little sparkle inside of me telling me that no matter how old I get, I am still living my OWN life. Being in the rock bottom, emotionally speaking, so many times and getting up all by myself because there never seems to be anyone around to offer any help, I've come to realize that I am not living the lives of other people. Other, "normal" people. And that is, in a very weird way... liberating? There must come a time when we just accept what life is, and with that comes the release of the pression to try to compete in a race that we never even were trained for, or equipped to handle. There is nothing wrong with being the oldest one in the classroom, but you're there learning. Or to go out and do things you'd llike to do even though there is no one with you, you're still doing it. Life never stops until it ends, and so long as it hasn't ended, your potential experiences are always unlimited, even though they might not seem so.

[@toxiczombiewolf5692]

I'm 24 too. Almost died last year and have a bunch of complications because of it. I feel like my youth is being wasted because of something I can't control. Lost my job very little money, not many friends terrible family makes you wonder where to turn. I've taken steps into getting mental health help, but the steps feel too small or taking too long.

[@borone1998]

26 turning 27 this year. same boat here, man.

[@philreddiii2048]

It will be alright. I'm 25 and in the same boat, but I'm exiting it, and have begun exiting that boat already for a small amount of time now. Although I still feel there is more to go, I know that process has already begun, I just need to continue and continuing is something that I could lose sight of. However, I don't think I will. You'll be alright. We'll all be alright. God bless.

[@fittlea8248]

When I read your title, I felt that heavy, I'm only 18 and I don't wanna waste my life, I also don't wanna have an Extremely exciting life either, sometimes I just wanna be perfect so I don't regret my youth, or I have some amazing legacy so I die being remembered, I don't want to be just a lost memory. I'm glad a channel like yours exist, it makes life a bit more worth living.

[@VVabsa]

Remembered by whom? By those you care about or people you've never met or will meet?

[@fittlea8248]

​@@VVabsaboth to be honest, it comes from insecurity of not feeling valuable ig, So the innate of not wasting my Youth becomes even stronger

[@wren_.]

@@VVabsabeing forgotten is the worst kind of death

[@VVabsa]

@@wren_. It's not. Just look how many family members of you died or were already dead when you were born and which one you still remember. To be forgotten is just a part of the natural process. To be forgotten while still alive is argueably worse, if you keep clinging on the people who do so. In which case, you're in a toxic relationship with those people and should move on ASAP for your own mental being.

[@VVabsa]

@@fittlea8248 Just don't get too obsessed about that. It's not worth losing yourself or lose true friends over it.

[@uydagcusdgfughfgsfggsifg753]

10:45 - The hardest thing is to follow your own advice, but what’s worse is to never, and be left with the knowledge that your had that knowledge, yet did nothing with/about it

[@ProfessorViral]

What I've been finding in writing a few videos after this one, is that I've also gotten to ready to close the book on my understanding of my advice to myself, considering an evolving feeling fully understood when it needed time to evolve. Even once we have the advice, it might only be the start, and there's always more to understand. But I'm happy to keep understand, until the end, as much as I can

[@specialknees6798]

Every time I hear the question, “what advice would you give your younger self?” I never have an answer, because I knew what mistakes I was making while I made them. I knew every step of the way how I was fucking my future self over. What could I have said to my younger self that would actually change the trajectory of my life.

[@Melissa31179]

The feeling of having been a ghost watching it's shell move around for years, it's like being frozen in time

[@Bloodyjinx58]

When I was 14, I had nothing but dreams and plans for myself and for my life. Despite everything I had went through up til that point, I still had some motivation to change things. I never felt alive, just that I was surviving. Then I experienced nothing but four years of abuse and pain. I graduated high school, tried to get a job and failed (many times), and lost all that motivation I once had. I was losing myself because of that abusive relationship, losing my youth. I was strung along by sweet words mixed with assault and lies. I became complacent with him, wanting to believe he’d be better, that he’d change and I wouldn’t end up having wasted all my time “fixing” him. Clearly it was. The abuse reached a boiling point, and somehow it finally ended. I got away, forced into that change by an event that has definitely broken me. Even now I still feel like I’m losing more and more time to a person I left a year ago. I still don’t know what I want to do, what I like or what I hate, what I’m even capable of doing. I have no confidence in myself and it paralyzes me constantly. I’m scared, scared of anything and everything. My friends will try to push me, but I’m just stuck. I’ve already wasted so many years, and I know I’ll waste more. But it’s fine. I think. It’s enough for me that I can live. It’s enough to have only one or two people who care. It’s enough that I may never do everything I want, so long as I’m at peace and happy for the time I have left. Which is actually a lot most likely. I don’t plan to stay like this, I want to start pushing myself more and more soon, but it’s not like I’ve failed at life even if I do. I just hope maybe I will at least end up writing books like I want, or making videos like this. Anyways, loved the video man❤️, video essays like this have done a lot of heavy lifting in helping me emotionally this past year and yours are fr great

[@Ullarc]

I haven't commented on a video in years, but you put into words that creeping dread that has been occupying my mind in my recent endeavors to become a writer. This video brought (Is bringing) me to tears about a feeling that I haven't been doing all that I can to accomplish my dreams. The frequent excuses I use to justify abandoning my favorite hobbies, all for the hope that everything will work out in the end. I live every day with the lingering fear that by the time I finish writing my first book, that It won't be successful enough for me to quit my shitty job and write full time. That I'm losing every part of me that I cared so deeply for, all for the possibility of all my effort being thrown in the trash by the time I'm done. But I think I always knew that, and hearing it from somebody else reminded me that just because its uncomfortable that I'm not meeting my own expectations doesn't mean that I'm wasting my time. Wasted time is never wasted if you're enjoying what you're doing and it doesn't hurt to take a break every once in a while to keep your house in order. The revelation that I haven't invested enough time to even begin going on my adventure has brought me a much needed reality check. Thank you sir for all that you do, I know in my mind that your adventure has only just begun. From one introspective person to another, make sure you take care of yourself. This is the kind of content the world needs and I hope that one day you receive all the success that I know you deserve. Thank you.

[@ProfessorViral]

I've given up a lot of my youth in chasing this dream. It started as a way to fulfill it over 8 years ago now, but as adult life caught up with me it was something that both needed more and more time for what I'd grown into creating, and also existed in a life with less time than ever before. To say that I've missed out on opportunities people my age usually take would be an understatement. I've prioritized this over anything that would typically be called "living life" for years now. And, I would often think to myself, "how long do I do this for if it never takes off?", thinking about "how far behind" I would be from my peers. But even if it never took off, I don't think that what I've discovered from this journey would ever be a waste. It's what's led me to finally live those few free moments in ways I truly understand as valuable. At the end of the day, I love that as a child I would have never considered doing this because it led me here, and I love being here for where it seems to be taking my future. Not one moment of my life, or any of ours, has truly been wasted

[@mitdemall]

Hi I wish you all the best on your journey to becoming the writer you want to be :) I am in a similar stop right now. Trying to be a musician and discovered last year that releasing your first album, is only the first of a lot of small steps toward my goal.

[@joyboyzaki]

Damn.. i cried over the video and over this comment , exactly what i want too , going through , and then felt... love for all of you

[@Fruitcupper]

I feel I wasted my 20's staying at home and PC gaming 14hours a day. 4 years on, now 35, I've moved out, started a small business, and spend on average 19 hours a day alone. I'm now my own best friend for life and I couldn't be happier. The future me that I'm aiming to continue to become is the hero I now look up to. My feeling of lost time now makes me work that much harder. Learn, grow, evolve, thrive.

[@ProfessorViral]

Seeing all the time I sank into things I now know are, at least for me, meaningless and unnecessary, I do find a lot of motivation in being different from what I was. At the very least, it means I'm still able to grow and better myself, and that's something

[@Fruitcupper]

@@ProfessorViral It absolutely is something! Good on you 👊♥️

[@hian]

I did the opposite of wasting my youth. I did pretty much everything worthwhile in the 13-23ish period of my life. I did well in school with little to no effort, so I also made time for friends and a girlfriend. Partied, had sex, played video games, the guitar, read books, travelled. Took long walks and discussed philosophy, tried different part-time jobs. I did it all and I did so well and with so much gusto that once I had to become "an adult", life immediately turned a gray slog from which it has never recovered. I'm 36 now, and all I can say is that if wasting my youth would have made adult life a less insufferable and stiffling load of bullshit and unrewarding responsibilities by contrast, then I wish I had wasted my youth. There's not a day were I didn't wish I could turn back the clock and tlmeskip back to my 13 year old self and do that part of my life over and over and over again. The great thing about not knowing the highs is that you won't know you're hitting lows until you do.

[@tVt2000]

Sounds like you decided your life is already over… in your 30s, that’s pretty sad man.

[@hian]

@@tVt2000 Nah, nothing so drastic. I just don't particularly enjoy or appreciate the values of adult polite society. My greatest pleasures in life still reflect the same things I enjoyed as a youth. My point is rather that being a youth was way better because my freedom to unabashedly pursue those pleasures was much greater than as an adult, and short of winning the lottery, I don't see that changing. Add to the fact that with age comes reduced physical capabilities, mental fortitude and energy, I don't really see aging as a winning prospect at all. I'd rather die in my sleep before hitting 50 than to keep extending my life into old age while diminishing returns keep growing. Some might see that as sad, but personally I find other humans' preoccupation with longevity way more sad and grotesque. Wabi sabi, mono no aware and all that. Human life is best short and bright, not clawing at the end of your grave for a few extra seconds of breath.

[@tVt2000]

@@hian wow, we are at the exact opposite ends of the spectrum, good for you mate.

[@RizzodiraRizzukku]

Honestly makes life sound even more worse than I already think it is. Knowing that I could get older and just dislike it even more is something I'm not looking forward to. I know every person's experience is different but still.

[@iiCounted-op5jx]

yeah that sounds brutal too

[@walkerdev1]

I love this guy. I was going down a lone and hateful path as my life didn''t go as it could have from both my environment stopping me and me not having any support structure. However when I started listening to ProfessorViral a few months ago, it's like he understood it all through the screen and in his own stories it reflected it as well. He really worded things in ways I never thought of and it felt like he always had the right words I should have maybe heard before. I since then have been putting my life back together and have continued working on my project out of enjoyment more than out of a sense of urgency and hate. It still feels likea tug of war in my mind sometimes but it's one I feel like I might finally stand a chance of winning.

[@ProfessorViral]

I don't really have the right words more than anyone else, I just get to outline and script them and edit them more than others. But I'm glad me doing that can really help, and thank you for such kind words

[@Slitnek0]

Felt this fr 😭 the environment I live in is stopping me from achieving things in my life. I have a option to leave but I’m just afraid bc everything will change and once I make the decision I can’t come back

[@tdotitan8855]

I remember i was doing the opposite of "wasting my youth" i studied hard i worked hard. I didnt go out very much. I didnt do anything crazy and i played things pretty safe. But when i went to college i realized that i wanted to enjoy my life instead of working all the time. So i kinda had some problems didnt go to class etc... but years later even tho i dont make a lot of money, i like my job and my life and i make enough. And the most important thing is i can have fun and dont need to stress all the time. I would take a wasted youth 100 times over a wasted life. I wasted my youth ironically but i gained a new perspective and i realized what i wanted out of life. Sometimes we spend our entire lives chasing what other people want of us. I will probably try to move up at some point but honestly i am happy right now and i never thought i ever would be. Life doesnt need to be as complicated as i thought it did

[@CatsEverywhere33]

The last sentence- thank you i needed that i'm glad you are living happily now goodluck

[@tdotitan8855]

@@CatsEverywhere33 I am glad you found what i said helpful. Thank you, Good luck to you as well

[@Neonagi]

This anime came into my life when it first aired and I was stuck in a deep rut. I cut off almost all of my friends, some that I'd known since childhood, and shuttered myself indoors; paralyzed by expectation, fear, anguish, failure, shame, pity... It lifted me out of that hole I dug for myself and now I'm living a life I wouldn't have dreamed of even just 6 years ago. I took baby steps at first to break out again but with each passing day, week, month I kept improving. Life now is not perfect but it's massively better than where I was at before, mentally and physically. This show was not mere entertainment, or even another escapist fantasy, it was a philosophical alarm that broke me out of my stupor. I love it dearly and hope others can experience the same impact it had for me.

[@taylozen]

i used to have an obsession with making the most of my childhood but i really quickly realized that _i_ wasn't having fun with the things i would have wanted to do. sometimes i just didn't have the energy or desire to do "fun" things and i just wanted to rest and that was the best decision i could make in those moment

[@ProfessorViral]

For sure. The real key aspect is experimentation. If it turns out what you tried wasn't for you, it was just a nice bit of confirmation

[@PunkinThePie]

Was not expecting to be this early but this video is honestly so true as life goes on as a teen and young adult I can’t help but feel as if my life is wasted doing mínale tasks

[@ProfessorViral]

I feel the same way, but after really processing it im glad those times led me to be someone who can regret them. That regret only means I grew into someone new, and that means they weren't a waste

[@polijip7777]

bro you are only 5min into the video

[@PunkinThePie]

@@polijip7777 I was actually watching the video both on my phone and laptop 😭

[@patrikviera2007]

I want to cry. I want to scream. I want to run away. I want things to end.

[@uppishcub1617]

I know that feeling. You should really make a change, before the feelings become too much abd you break. You'll avoid a lot of unnecessary extra suffering that way.

[@BobbinRobbin777]

Take the black-pill. Do it.

[@Relicnovaa]

Videos like these are so overwhelming to me.I graduated highschool this year haven’t gone to college yet.I’m so scared I don’t know what I wanna do with my life I just wanna live.I hate the systems in place and what we have to live on and I feel like I’m going crazy because I don’t want this to be the way it is.I think the fear of everything and nothing is just too much.I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore I’m just over it.

[@Relicnovaa]

Maybe I just need to get out and do shit idk

[@opticalsalt2306]

@@RelicnovaaYou’re 100% not alone. I talked with my grandma yesterday about where I want to go in life, and how scary and random it can be… and honestly just how tiring and boring adulthood is. But she said “The only real thing I could do is to take it day by day, I had no idea I was gonna get married, working at a grocery chain. I never went to college, just one day met a cool guy at church and this is my life now.” I thought it was honestly hilarious. But honestly, I’ve realized worrying too much will honestly bring you down imo. I cant give you or myself any real answers, but most of us feel that way, so I hope it makes you feel better about your place in the world. Most people seem to have it a lot less figured out than they let you see. At least that’s what social media has done to me (Bonus points for using honestly too much)

[@noobguy9973]

@@opticalsalt2306 one of the problems is however is how different her time was compared to ours now. Did they had more or less competition than us? Were they living in a time with more or less love? Did they have a stable economy? Did they worry about things as much as we do? Were they even aware of many problems that we ourselfs worry about in your lives? Thats also something to consider.

[@xxz1434]

I graduated high school 6 years ago and only started attending university 3 years ago, trust me things aren't easier in college. Some material is automatically "expected" to be already known and never explained in great detail, it is upto you to figure it out, if you're the quiet socially anxious type unless you force yourself to change you are screwed, enjoy spending the next 4 years alone, people are still judgemental and immature, bullying happens but more indirectly, i.e get talked behind your back and ignored. The possibility of also suddenly hating your degree may happen, the lectures and learning material can turn your fun hobby/passion upside down. I'm really only getting my degree as a backup and keep my parents happy for now.

[@uppishcub1617]

You don't gotta go to college. It doesn't really give most people anything but debt. Unless you think you're "him" academically you're better off just experimenting around for a few years to see what you want to do.

[@Anigeek1246]

One time, this year actually, is when I truly realized that stepping out of the comfort zone is necessary in making the most out of my youth. Last year, I was picking classes and I’m a band kid, so I had the choice of joining the school Jazz band. However I thought, I’m not skilled enough for that and saved it for next year, my senior year. But then I saw the person who stood in my place instead and he shined like a star with his tenor sax solo. I was happy for him, he was a year under me and can play such a solo. But then it hit me. That could’ve been me and I realized that I missed out on what could’ve been one of my greatest moments in my student history or a key moment in my life. The key to living a fulfilling life is taking risks and doing what you love. So what if you’re not good enough? Just try it and if you fail, work on it and do better next time. Step out of your comfort zone and do something new.

[@tetra654]

Definitely feel the fear that I might just be bad at living life. It is good to have changed enough to want more, but I'm afraid I'm not strong or passionate enough to really go after anything past a cursory attempt. With each repetition of the cycle between failed adventure and stagnant comfort there's a mounting sense of futility that turns into its own barrier to overcome. I guess it's a lot harder to turn depression into motivation compared to anxiety. Anyhow, it's always nice to see the emotional depth you put into these video essays.

[@ProfessorViral]

For me, the hardest part has been the moments that feel like they're about to fail, when I'm just wandering alone after I didn't talk to a single person all night, or before I could even find the motivation to try. I think I've just been lucky; most of those times I've randomed my way into a situation that makes the night much better. The only thing I can control about that is increasing the odds; being out when I can, growing comfortable with the places I go, and choosing places that lend themselves to what I want. It's an odd game of odds, I guess. I wish I could say something easier than that

[@tetra654]

​ @ProfessorViral I know how it is with those tipping point moments, those silver linings can be a good way to avoid spiralling. I'm glad they've largely been kind to you. It's not easy, but it's a good way of looking at things, and I appreciate it.

[@snail736]

This is probably why I watch these coming of age anime so much. They're usually about the idealised scenario of an aimless highschooler coming to the realisation of what they want from their youth and striving towards fulfilling it. It's something that I wish had happened to me so watching it is the closest I can to experiencing it. I'm still feeling the consequences of my aimlessness and apathy towards my life during my time in high school to this day. I've missed out on many opportunities due to procrastination, depression, social anxiety, and general apathy. I try to guide my younger siblings off the path that I went as I've lived through it.

[@ProfessorViral]

Well some experinces are lost to time, for example I can't join a high school club now obviously, there is no experince which has every resprentation of it lost to time. I could still join a similar club for adults, from flag football to film. So, I believe it's never to late, and there is no wasted time, because some version of what we desire can always be found. I didn't start doing what I wanted to until last year myself

[@joyboyzaki]

Dude i cried... this touched me deeply , i just feel sometimes that it's all already written and if so I'm gonna reach what i want because its out there , i know its out there , i know its in the unknown, i know its gonna change me and my life , yet im still here not knowing how to start , i wanma become a writen , i have worlds to show and let out , I'm still learning how , I'm still trying to know how to live too , to belong , this helped me now , thank you sir , love to you

[@wadejohnston4305]

You and your channel are proof of how deep and touching and moving a lot of these anime can be. I've heard "anime?...yeah weird ass f*cks watch that stuff and people with no bf/gf and its just cartoons" soooo many times and read it even more. But anime has done more for me and how I view life than most other things and this channel is a beacon of positivity. Thanks man for all the hard work you do.

[@hotsauce0097]

I clicked on this vid because of how much the words resonated with me. Was not expecting it to be about A Place Further Than The Universe 😂. I love that show and I’m glad this is what the vid is about

[@lolkittensnya3717]

I ended up watching this anime while in that stagnant state, and while it took another couple of months for things to happen, I ended up taking a trip across the country to visit a friend i hadnt seen in a couple years, there were a lot of uncomfortable times meeting his new situations, seeing an actual Ghetto, even just the sound of people talking was different out there, it took a good chunk of they money i had at the time to go, but i dont regret it, i needed to do something to move, to break out of that static place i was in, and now i'm looking at doing something like that again.

[@ProfessorViral]

I was just starting to again when I wrote this. I'd gotten used to just being inside, alone again, and really it was me writing, or maybe even yelling at myself, to get back out. Not for what anyone else said it defines about someone, but because I need to understand myself, and right now the others are the only way to do so. I don't regret my past at all, but I would regret one where I knew what I had to do, and didn't

[@ugogrange6863]

I'm at the beginning of a really scary, life-altering adventure of my own, so finding this video right now is oddly serendipitous. Filled with insight I needed to address the anxiety. Thanks a lot

[@Avant_Garden]

This hit hard. I have a little less 2 years until I’m done with my youth and I need to make a change. For years I’ve wanted to change but I never had the drive. It’s starting to feel like if I don’t do something soon I will leave my youth with no impact. Looking at this video essay I think that a trip with new people that I don’t really know is something that I could genuinely benefit from. Studying abroad for a bit this summer may be my best chance at this. Thank you for this video and bringing some hope and motivation towards living a fulfilling life in my last few years of youth.

[@ProfessorViral]

Remember, youth is a special time, but it's never too late. Start in a safe way and don't take on more than you can handle 💙

[@SantanaBanana47]

Too much comfort makes me feel like im wasting my life. Ive come to realize this feeling is justified. There are so many things that require IMMENSE discomfort, and are actually the things I truly want to put my time and effort in.

[@ProfessorViral]

Some level of it really is required. KZbin isn't fun to do all the time, every single day of my life, but it's been my most worthwhile venture because it's not strictly comfortable

[@Panet0nsumletterz]

I'm gonna share my somewhat depressing story here My youth was completely wasted because of undiagnosed OCD, I was just stuck in my own head all the time, worrying about nonsense, being delusional and doing time-consuming compulsions, that's all my life was, the only other thing I did was distract myself with entertainment, I had no friends or goals other than "survive", and neither me or my family knew what was wrong with me and I refused to actually explain my thought process to anyone until I learned about OCD at school, and found out that I'm not alone in this world, there's other people who think in the same way, I didn't have to be ashamed of this, I could talk to a therapist about it I only healed at well over 18 years old, I prefer to just not think about how much i missed, it is what it is, what matters is that I am finally free

[@Rock3tPirat3]

Watching this video from the beginning straight to the end actually made me feel better about my life, for years I thought I wasted my childhood laying around I'm dreaming big but fully believing that there's no possible way that I can reach those dreams before adulthood even started. I fully believed I never experienced life, even though I didn't even realize the true meaning of it, though regrets were made nothing is lost, through all the hardships, through all the experiences and all the memories; I was living life, I'm living it right here and now, and thousands of people are probably sitting here thinking the same thing, truly never alone.

[@Rock3tPirat3]

I don't know if that was entirely the point of the video but that was my take on it

[@gunnaschanelbag]

you’re a disgustingly underrated video essayist. i can’t wait till you get your next string of big breaks. great things await you brother just be patient ❤️🙏🏾❤️

[@ProfessorViral]

Thank you, I'm already very lucky to have what I do though, even if I'll always be trying to grow more just the same. I never really imagined it would even grow this far

[@gunnaschanelbag]

@@ProfessorViral keep making content like this and you’ll get to where you wanna be. trust! this stuff is awesome

[@hakujin970]

This video hit me incredibly hard. Always felt like I wasted my own youth. I've been working full time and going to school full time since I was 16 so I never made or kept any friends in highschool. Never had time for a relationship or anything outside of work, school and a single minded goal. I'm almost 24 now and looking back it's depressing to see all the time I wasted simply "grinding" only to be stuck at a 9-5 desk job that makes me miserable. Between all the slice of life and shojo anime I watch I also get that feeling that I didn't do my youth "correctly" per say. Watching this video and reading the comments, realizing that I not the only person who feels this way is comforting is a strange way. Love your video essays brother, can't wait for the next one!

[@iiCounted-op5jx]

beyond brutal

[@lucadue196]

This video essay made me stop and think very hard about my life, it was beautiful. I was a very straight-laced kid growing up. I had nothing but straight As, went through primary and secondary school with perfect timing and flying colors, that type of thing. I never once deviated from the route of a traditionally 'good' kid, someone who no one had any problems with at all. Yet in the back of my mind, I've always thought that I was wasting my youth somehow. A bit ironic, since I've lived the dream-- the perceived 'perfect' remedied life that people with a lot of regrets over their youth preach about. I don't regret how I've hold myself, and I don't regret the way I was raised. In fact, I am tremendously grateful that the way I lived back then was an available option. Though I admit that I wished I had more courage to deviate from my constant droning norm. I'm just 18, and admittedly... I still find that life passes me by too fast for my own liking. Up to the point where I find myself forgetting that I am still in the forefronts of my youth--- that I can still afford to take risks every now and then, no matter how miniscule or utterly insignificant it may seem to some grand narrative. It has come to the point where I had to give myself a good slap on the wrist and write reminders of my existence on my skin to remind myself that as long as I exist, change is a thing that I can make happen. Youth isn't the currency needed to experience new things at all. Though I am young, and I admit youth makes it easier, it's not the main--- much less the only defining factor. Thank you for making this video essay, and also for fostering the community of people coming over and commenting under this video as well. Everyone's lovely and kind with sharing their stories and struggles. This feels incredibly human. It's more than wonderful.

[@elysian499]

your story really spoke to me since this was exactly how I lived my younger years as well. im 19 now and i always feel like i could've done so much more in my high school days before starting college; honed my skills and hobbies a little more. now I have friends who are far better at the things we do, some who are already financially independent because they had sown the seed in those days, when i, for the majority of my time, was busy studying due to a lot of pressure from teachers and parents since I was the 1st ranker in the class. i know what I had was and is what a lot of people often desire to have- excellent marks, respect from teachers, being known by others for being "smart". And i wouldn't say it didn't benefit me because it did, i got a full scholarship to study in college. but if i could trade that with being good at what i actually like, with my skills honed through those years, i would. i was never interested in academics, just had to do it under a lot of pressure and expectations. a lot of people who know me, including my family, still don't think of me as anything but "the smart/studious" one and years back, when I was struggling to find myself and what I really wanted, other people's ideas of me really affected me and my own sense of identity. but again, i have to keep reminding myself: my youth isn't over yet. although 20 seems intimidating, i still have a lot of time to regain back the times I've lost to give to my hobbies and do something worthwhile with them- and you do too. so let's keep living and sorry for this long reply lol i wish you a great life 🫶🫶✨

[@clau_sing_]

I think we spend our whole lives trying to learn how to live And never actually learn

[@albuscore7955]

A place further than the universe is one of my favorite stories. Happy thanksgiving!

[@ProfessorViral]

It easily took a top spot for me, even as a new watch

[@MicahSedillo]

Damn... just the title makes me feel seen in life rn. Thank you.

[@lobsterbalobster665]

Thanks for the video. It's a really important topic for millions of people. I'm still going throught this process of "wasting" youth, and the video feels personal too. Thank you again!

[@scootinhootin6928]

I purposely put off this video because a minute in, I knew it was going to hit me like a truck. And as much as I wanted it's revelations, I was afraid of the hurt and guilt that I would feel from it. And hurt and guilt for myself did I feel. But if not for that hurt and guilt I would have continued to procrastinated on my college applications, my make up test, the invitation of my friend to hang out, and my promise I made to myself after the passing of my friend two years back. For that, I cannot exemplify my thanks for your content and this video alone. I can't wait to cry and improve myself after I watch more of your videos lol

[@ericteng7125]

Such a great video! A Place Further than the Universe hit me super hard and your breakdown of the different perspectives of "wasted youth" in the show changed my attitude a bit on how much I wasted my own youth. Looking back on middle/high school, I always wish I spent more time learning different skills or becoming more confident around others. However, the experiences I had back then shape my motivation now. When reflecting on my past, I tend to focus on the parts I wanted to improve but was too afraid to work towards, the regret as you mentioned. I also compare my past and present to others a lot. However, there is also probably a lot of things in my youth that were amazing and special that others would want but I take for granted. I think the mixture of beauty and regret that shapes our growth is what makes youth special. Instead of being so harsh on myself, I think using regret to motivate action today is a much more productive approach.

[@chiaraguscelli6687]

This is an absolute masterpiece. I‘m currently at the hospital because I broke my foot. Yesterday I was supposed to be be released, but instead I have another surgery, but its appointment was delayed again, today. Your words and everything from this video really helped me, to calm down. Thank you

[@dragonborn0295]

Hope everything goes well to you!

[@deathwish_bigboss]

You get your whole life as part of the deal, young phase or when you're older; don't be afraid of getting old cause of some mental image you have about what someone your age should be doing right now

[@nunothedude]

honestly i have wasted my youth im 23 and i have never had the things young people had during teenage years and my early twenties, its over

[@inboundira329]

This comment is a bit old but 23 is still so young. If you change your life at 25 you’d live the majority of it in that changed state assuming u live to 80

[@nunothedude]

@@inboundira329 well what if i dont and end u working a shitty job for the rest of my life and hate it, i have no skills or degree

[@darklight6247]

A great video reflecting on where desires come from, and how they can even eat at us in negative ways. It takes risk to beget reward.

[@ProfessorViral]

That's always been the struggle for me, as someone so tended towards stability for many reasons. Now, it's just about wondering what regrets I could have, and what to do about it, even if I always will have them

[@Something-ln8pi]

Man, I haven’t even watched this yet, but reading the title, I’m already emotional

[@ProfessorViral]

Hopefully it lived up to that!

[@pitufinpo]

Man im 16 and i just feel tired of everything even tho i haven't "experienced" life yet I don't feel like im living im just alive

[@nnnnmhughuuhhjiijj9457]

Might wanna get that checked, could be anemia or depression.

[@pitufinpo]

@@nnnnmhughuuhhjiijj9457 i tried to get therapy but they just told me to sleep more so i started sleeping at 6pm and waking up at 7am for school nothing got better

[@rea280]

^^^^^ There are so many life paths once you graduate hs that even if you don’t find purpose now you can find it later. Don’t stunt your future self.

[@pitufinpo]

@@rea280 i don't see the paths, and living just because its really boring im alredy doing that

[@rea280]

​@@pitufinpo I get it bro I feel the same way because most days are an exact repeat and I have nothing to ascribe value to. I grew up in a not so optimal setting and am pretty much psychologically broken. I'm changing my enviornment after I finish this college semester (19) and joining the AF. I havent lived through it all but I understand that there may be a pathway that can garner more life satisfaction and happiness. The way you precive the world around you is a mindset. Satisfy the maslow pyramid before you give up. If its a chemical imbalance it can be fixed. If its a lifestyle problem that can also be remedied. Don't throw in the towel until you tried. You might be pleasently suprised.

[@zenonsimon3402]

You are the single most important thing on KZbin, God bless you

[@Dinhjason]

I never asked to grow up, and I never wanted to be forever young. I just wanted to make everything worth it.

[@peaveejay2700]

I love the thought of going back once more just to fulfill on the youth that was wasted, then I remembered "double-edge sword" and "butterfly's effect"

[@ProfessorViral]

We'd only destroy the future which made us feel that way if we undid the past for sure. We'd come back into being probably wishing we'd done it differently either way. It's sad, but that's just proof that we're not stagnant creatures, and thats important

[@peaveejay2700]

@@ProfessorViral I think from what I'm referring to are "what-if scenarios" and "worst-case scenarios". If I try to act more boldly, then my youth wouldn't be wasted due to confidence. But because I tend to get reckless at some point, who knows one of my worst fear such as someone getting involved and harmed in the long run would eventually come true.

[@woomynation]

Really enjoyed this video, hit deep at so many points but the one that probably was the best imo was how being able to feel like you had a wasted youth is a sign of your own growth.

[@ProfessorViral]

It's something that's always really stuck out to me. As a kid staying up until 2am playing COD was all I cared about, and now most of my free time goes to videos. Not to say that either is better or worse, but I do like that I've changed, and what I find satisfying shows that best

[@yorimoigig]

I just want to credit Jukki Hanada for this masterpiece of a show. Thank you for positively changing my life. Really!

[@picocore1]

You helped me put into words the feelings ive been feeling, it was eating me alive and it was affecting how i treated my girlfriend. i dont know how to fix my problems but you've helped me understant where it may stem from. i hope you're doing amazing

[@DanielWatkins-w3n]

As a 14yo m, this was honestly a wake up call for me. It's hard to explain but, when I a kid, I was so lively and, never to life for granted so to speak. But as I got older, I became sad and worn out. But while I was watching this video, I remembered my dream, the dream to write captivating stories like the ones I see in the shows and movies, books, and games I've consumed. I don't care how hard it is, I don't care what happens to me, as long as I get to have fun doing what I love most, being able to live out the dream that I thought was limited to just my imagination. Even if it's just temporary, even if the adventure will end eventually, I don't want my dreams and talent to go to waste. But, even if I don't live out this current dream of mine, there's definitely something bigger, greater that will probably replace my current dream. But all I can do is keep moving forward and wait and seek out the next adventure.

[@Struzzzmann]

Hey, this is going to sound stupid but, I’m also fourteen years old and it seems as if my aspirations and perception of this world are so far beyond any of my peers, and I think they want you to support a kids dream, but want to make him bend the knee and be a slave to those who take advantage of everything. I love too say this, I seriously teared up reading this because it hit not close to home but in my bedroom close, your message has transcended any boundaries I have put up even if it is 12:18, at the time of writing this. I thank you Sir, or Ma’am, and I hope you actualize your dreams.

[@bchayden9535]

I just wanted so say, Thank you for making such a great video. I haven't ever watched a video that connected with me so much emotionally.

[@ProfessorViral]

Thank you for being so kind, it's meant so much to see this amazing response. I'm so glad I could be the one to say these words in the video, but the feelings that made it possible are from us all

[@jamon8139]

Great video as ever dude! Even when I have no interest in the material being discussed or even sometimes the wider topic of the video, you're such an eloquent speaker with such meaningful and thought-provoking things to say. What really interested me about this particular video is the process of something one fresh and exciting becoming mundane, comfortable and routine, and how that thing can still maintain value in once that happens. I experience it most of all in friendships. Making new friends is probably my favourite experience in the world bar none (at least of life's fairly common experiences that you can achieve regularly), I feel so alive and so unmistakably happy when I'm making first impressions, getting to know them and how we can enjoy each other's company, cautiously probing for boundaries, the whole thing. It's so exciting and it's so blissful to me because it's so unblemished - there's no history between you so you never have a reason to doubt them, you don't know the ugly parts of each other yet so neither of you have to worry about the tougher parts of friendships just yet, your mind is filled with possibilities of what this connection could blossom into. I tend to fixate pretty hard on the new people I meet because it feels so fresh and good, even if it means leaving my long-time friends to feel a bit left behind at times. But of course that can't last forever, it's the the honeymoon phase of a new romantic relationship. Eventually the pathways in your brain will get used to that new bond and you stop feeling such bliss every time you're around them and they stop being on your mind 24/7 and they become mundane like all of your other friends. Once that magic is gone I find all too often that we never hang out as much or become as close of friends that I had hoped. Not to say I don't still appreciate my comfortable friends, my friends mean the world to me new or old, but it's a struggle because I want that new exciting feeling again, but as an adult making new friends is rare. Even if you try really hard at it, it's probably not healthy to only indulge in shallow and yet-unblemished friendships and that wouldn't be fair to your old friends and old friends can still offer such incredible value to your life, it's just harder to see sometimes. I don't have any grand conclusions to make, just something that this video really got me thinking about. Hope you're doing well PV

[@ProfessorViral]

I'm glad someone else put that feeling of meeting people into words for me, and ones much more flattering than how I'd describe myself doing it haha. Most of what I consider indicative of living life currently, to me, is meeting people, and I do tend to value that so highly it can harm longer term relationships. Its a feeling I hope I can properly explore and understand one day, what it says about me and why I desire it so highly, but that day will have to wait I guess. It's a mystery to me still, for now

[@marocat4749]

Its criminal how you havent more subscribers , emotional as always.

[@ProfessorViral]

I'm aiming for more as anyone is, but its also amazing to have what I do already, much more than I could ever say I expected!

[@1000WaystoBewrong]

So much of what you discuss here feels so attributable to the anime Welcome to the NHK. Misaki is a fantasy in a way, but there is nonetheless a real life adventure and each character is a little let down by how things resolve before mundane routines once again take hold.

[@ProfessorViral]

That's one I've been meaning to watch for a while, but I was so busy I kept going for movies or 13 episode series. But, it'll be talked about sometime here for sure!

[@1000WaystoBewrong]

@@ProfessorViral well I have a bunch of your essays to watch in the meantime. You are so skilled at articulating your thoughts, and even when you're unsure of yourself, you manage to make it poignant. Thank you for making these!

[@joshuaharris3039]

Thank You for letting me know my time mattered and my thoughts of regrets were really just thoughts ❤

[@ProfessorViral]

As long as they help you be who you want to be, then they're an important step on a long journey

[@MichelangeloVA]

Crazy thing about it is, you can achieve all that you wanted and still feel the same way a person who hasn't achieved what they wanted does. Deep down i think its ultimately all about perspective and acceptance, easily to feel wasted youth when you compare your experience and expectations of that time to somebody else lives in the moment. But i think the solution is "well didn't get to experience this at this particular point while i was younger, but that won't mean i won't ever experience it in my life".

[@ProfessorViral]

I think there are some things that will always be limited by age. As a child, I dreamed of being a sports star, but the time for even a fraction of that has already passed me and could never return. I acknowledge that some things are temporary chances only because its a tragedy we should try to mitigate where possible. But, it is always true that perspective is important, as for each thing we do, there are so many more we don't. Someone can always be jealous of that other perspective because were limited, and so nothing is every really not valuable to spend time doing

[@YugenTFT]

It's fascinating how perspectives on what constitutes a 'waste' can vary so widely. What one person might dismiss as trivial, another could see as the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. It really emphasizes the subjectivity of our experiences. I think the anxiety around 'wasting youth' often stems from the feeling that, until you have the freedom that comes with financial independence and legal adulthood, the range of meaningful experiences can seem limited. It's like there's this glass ceiling on the potential adventures and opportunities you can explore. Life unfolds differently for everyone, and it's crucial to recognize and respect the diversity of paths people take.

[@ProfessorViral]

That point about the anxiety is definitely a part of it, since it's just our own perspective and "ability" being different from what it would be, just like as it differs from another person. The tragedy at the core of this all is that we're allowed the best time to appreciate life before we're truly allowed to live it with freedom, at least in what feels to be the most common case

[@SadScientist1]

I never realized that I actually wasted my youth until it was too late. I always wanted to hang out with somebody after school but instead I went straight home cause I was too scared to try. It's a little too late for me now, but I know I can still make most of the most of the time I've left.

[@ineedzemedic5810]

I graudated highschool only a few months ago. Im now regretting being shy and not exploring friend groups or activities. Now im in college and i struggle to fit into a group i want to be a part of. Truly i want to take my own advice and get out there but its truly hard.

[@SadScientist1]

@@ineedzemedic5810 Go get em' champ!!

[@xxz1434]

I wanted to hang out after school but my parents never let me, my biggest regret was never being rebellious, now in my mid 20s they wonder why I keep my distance with them and why i'm still socially awkward. My dad used to always say "son, you'll thank me when you're older" and he said it with confidence, I'm not angry at their decision. i'm angry with their sheer stupidity and ignorance, they still think they made the right choice to this day.

[@SadScientist1]

@@xxz1434 We're the same, I was always afraid of my parents and was always a goody two shoes, still am. I hope one day I'll be myself.

[@xxz1434]

​@@SadScientist1 it actually backfired for my parents. I'm more aggressive and take risks these days, i'm still socially awkward but not in the shy quiet way, more of a psychopath way (haha) as in, I may say the wrong things at the wrong time and be direct about it without batting an eye. At this point, you can't really blame your folks, yes they did the damage but its upto you to tape it all together, forget the past and go forward with your own mind. They'll never realise their mistakes but you did, so learn from them and should you have children don't do what your parents did.

[@kopan77]

Only 9 minutes into the video and Im already changing the way I think about life. Not many channels can do this. You earned a new subscriber my guy. Pls keep up the good work!!!

[@TheOneWhoKnocks70]

I like how PewDiePie is trying new stuff like drawing. Gigguk also made video about this and its one of most life changing anime.

[@randomnobody4293]

Thank you so much, this had perfekt timing. I've recently lost nights thinking about exactly this. I'll have to dump a few things but this seems like the right place. After meeting an old friend again I got hit by the realisation that I had missed out on a lot, we knew each other before our respective youths and just talked again and they told me about their exciting times, listening to them was fascinating because their life had been so incredibly intresting, they had had the youth I thought was just so much more. While I had nothing special to talk about and felt empty and boring, this person had filled their time to the maximum and in doing became empty and boring. They haven't realized and maybe never will, but while their youth was on blast, they lost themselves and maybe even their future. After our first meeting I tried to teach myself to live and failed, so at our next meeting I tried to learn to live by listening to my friend. But I learned nothing, even though this person had lived so much, they could tell me so much, they said nothing. It was sad and disappointing to see, what had become of the person I used call my best friend, they had burned out from the inside and were now reminiscing the blaze while fanning the last embers. The one thing I learned from them was to not live like them, because it would mean to live the greatest life possible, for the shortest time imaginable. I gave up on trying to learn from them and am now searching for my own ways to live, because this is the one skill no one can teach anyone else. It is hard or maybe even impossible to make up lost or wasted years, but without moving on and at least trying to change, is it possible to live at all? I lost 5 to 6 years and wasted 1 more, maybe this will be a good place to jump off of and reclaim myself. Good luck to anyone trying to take that dive

[@rossinanterose829]

I feel like a lot of people fear of "missing out" is just projected by the fact that they want to do things to tell themselves they've done it once or that it will change something. "I've never partied" "I've never traveled with friends" "I've never knew love" ... But the reality is you don't have to experience it to be accomplished and the image you make yourself out of these things is most of the time a bit altered, kinda like in highschool when everybody wanted to lose their virginity because they feel like it will change anything at all. Also that internet, medias ... Has told us that if w're not rich, famous or special in any sort of way when w're 20 or around that age, w're loser or non important. The only regrets you will have in life is things you wished you've done not because of others or to be special but because you genuiely have an interest in it.

[@theabrothers4408]

I am 13 right now and this video was perfect because I’ve been having an existential crisis recently about this and I would always wish I could just go back to when I was younger like when I was 8 or even just 1 year younger and every day I get more and more scared of my time and I also am very confused on what I want to spend this time on like I want to get better at basketball, but I also wanna do things like boxing, music, art, soccer there are so many things I want to do and I was so scared that maybe I would choose the wrong thing but this made me think about it and I think if I follow my heart and choose which one I want to do I’m sure it’ll be ok and thank you so much for this video it was very helpful

[@anothername2557]

as a 16 y/o, pls just try stuff, you'll know, and nothing has to be THE ONE DECISION, you can change over time the sports you do!!

[@theabrothers4408]

@@anothername2557thank you very much I’ll keep trying and hopefully and can succeed. Thanks!

[@ongyuxuan6989]

"one feels awful for being that guidance, and the other feels awful for taking it without question. ... " "needing a push like this is why we all feel some kind of a longing for a past we never had, and it is a feeling that we can never avoid ...." You hit something within me... I experienced similar stuff and this made me rethink back of myself keep on repeating how the past could have been like... tq....

[@brennan911]

havent felt so many emotions watching a yt video in a while lol. i guess this just kinda hit the nail on the head for the lingering... sentiment that has begun to colour my perception of my whole life as a person who just up and left their old life in their old hometown to go to uni in a ginormous city. like, i often catch myself revisiting the media and stuff that i consumed when i was younger for comfort, while also going to certain extremes to like, make sure that i'm living life to the fullest, be it wandering the city from midnight to dawn or dropping stupid amounts of money on things that i was never allowed to have under my parents' roof. not to mention the sheer hours i spend doing actually nothing in order to recover from my uni workload, only to get further behind because i just spent a whole day doing literally nothing and somehow managing to justify it to myself.

[@sneedmando186]

Go out there, live and love passionately ❤

[@ibejoe2518]

This is one of the best videos ive ever seen and will probably come back to in the future

[@samuelllakaj5439]

You could say my life "started" at 16. Before that I barely have anything memorable. Then at 17 I started facing some difficulties and "quit" life altogether! I'm 19 now and though many things have happened (great things and bad) I don't regret the past as much as I don't want to relive my mistakes. We'll never get those years back but life is meaningful at every age. Like they say, "you don't know they're the good times until they're gone".

[@Slydime917]

I always feel like I wasted my teenage years, because I haven't partied, had a gf, kissed, haven't ran away from home (never felt the need to)... Like what's wrong with ME? Why does it happen to everyone so casually, but not me? But when I think about it, I never liked any girls in my classes that much. School just went on, I played video games and now I'm here thinking I wasted my youth. I'm "only" 23, but it feels like the best years of my life are over since I have a job. Friends parted ways, found their own groups and I'm left alone. Of course now I'm going to events, exploring new hobbies and going to said hobby groups. I'm going out there as much as possible so as to not waste my 20's but there is always that fear that it's too late.

[@ProfessorViral]

I'm an amount of years past 23 now, and it's never too late. I only "started living" about a year ago, and it's been a long, slow process. But I try to look it not as using my youth, but as becoming the me who can have the future I want

[@Slydime917]

@@ProfessorViral yeah, I started the process of actually living just 3 months ago.

[@SpartanNat]

I realize now, at 18, I did not waste my youth. I had a burst of what I could do when I was younger because I had more free time and did a lot of stuff outdoors. Nowadays I’m mostly indoors between school and my friends being almost exclusively online. Weather also fluctuates between “Just too cold/lousy to not go outside,” and “I am in an unbearable oven.” I should, and can, go outside on my own will. I’m not being kicked out of the house. I’m not actively looking for a job as I manage school. And I realize as much as COVID sucked and I thought I wasted my childhood, I was just a lonely child, but also didn’t mind solitude. My friends online I have clicked with better than any friend I had irl for the most part. It’s not the regular path, but it’s a path I’m happy having gone down anyway.

[@matthewglenguir7204]

It's such a shame that youtube hates monthly uploads. Hope the algorithm picks this video up

[@ProfessorViral]

It's doing well so far, and of course I'd always like for them to do well, but its already more than I could hope for!

[@RedRattt]

Need to/ Have to is a big thing that holds you back from doing things. Being able to mentally shift where the line is can be massive to help you do the things you usually can't find motivation for. Go from "I want to draw and I can draw" to "I want to draw so I NEED to draw".

[@JellyCubeTV]

This is one of my favorite shows and one of my favorite coming of age shows

[@ProfessorViral]

It reached right up near the top of my list after watching it for sure

[@redtarget5275]

Your story about driving in snow was cute. I feel alive when theres fresh powder and ice on the roads at 2 am. I've destroyed a few snowbanks in my youth, but thats part of the learning process.

[@ProfessorViral]

As long as you and everyone is okay I guess haha

[@willsmith5653]

Thanks Homie, your words gave me insight.

[@ProfessorViral]

Glad they could!

[@jakariashafin1695]

I have no idea what to say about this but this has given me a lot to think about. awesome video though nothing quite like these that I know of on the Internet.

[@impulse-nati0n114]

me still hanging out and exploring my town with my friends in our 20s

[@samuelfalls7069]

genuinely the best video I've seen from you, yet!

[@ProfessorViral]

Thank you! As I was editing this one, I wasn't very confident. But for my "proofreading" watch a week later with fresh eyes, I really became proud of it

[@blaster.m1943]

"wasted youth" is certainly the most scary wording ive ever seen

[@ProfessorViral]

I assume my brain stole it from somewhere, it was the first descriptor I thought of for the feeling I got

[@blaster.m1943]

@@ProfessorViral it still hits hard enough for me to recognise because i would probably combine these words too for something melancholic such as lamenting the loss of something

[@tosdy8480]

Im sitting here bored out of my mind watching youtube for the 1000th day in a row and I watch this and the intro of this video made me feel so seen because I did that exact thing a month ago

[@melowmelow99]

Sora Yori is the only anime that can break me in seconds I love that series so much

[@ProfessorViral]

A good few series have made me cry when I pause and really ponder the situation. But this is one of the few that did it in almost an instant with one moment I probably don't even need to say

[@jonh101]

Currently in youth and trying to find a balance between having fun and working so i can reap the benefits of both factors

[@animationmann]

"Wasting Youth" is a Part of the Youth by wasting you sometimes learn the only fool is who not learn from his/her/it mistakes. As a Person who experienced his Teenage hood, every Person does live different because of their Personality. The only thing I can advise to you is that "Only the Time shows who are going to stand beside you" -Dragonball GT Opening. It was true for me at least over years Friendships shifted and changed, I still have Persons from Childhood as Friends even though there are currently one and getting in contact to others. Relationships can wither, but the Root (metaphorical for Plant) still exist which you have a common ground (School, Experiences or other) and maybe make a "New" Friendship (Revitalised). If you like it continue it. Adult Hood makes you lonely but you can maybe change it by you own pace i believe in you ;-)

[@OkamiSam]

as milan kundera said, our life is like a a sketch, making mistakes and not really knowing what to do until we try it and even then we regret it we didnt do it better or in a different way, its like a sketch but there isnt a final artwork, its like a rehearsal for a theatrical performance that will never do. Choose what you choose, you will probably regret it, and since you only have one life you cant learn from it and choose wisely in your next life. So chose what you feel will regret the least

[@AtlasAdvice254]

“What is special enough to become mundane but still worthwhile?” The mundane itself, the quiet moments of peace we have the privilege of enjoying. The meals we get to eat, the clean air we get to breathe, the safety of our homes without fear of harm. People dream of grand adventures and life changing events that cement them in history, but the people who accomplished those things did so in order to work for what we have now. Time is only wasted if you view it as wasted, otherwise you existed another moment in peace. A luxury that most people simply don’t have.

[@leetun444]

I am a 17 year old in Junior year of High School and all my life, I've always wanted to pursue into passions such as music, storytelling, and artwork. I've never really had genuine friends or no experience with the opposite sex (yes, anything you can think of.) Call me a freak of nature, but I never cared much about the stereotypical things many youngins, such as tweens and adolescents were focused on. Nothing regarding sex, having a girlfriend/boyfriend, smoking/drinking, etc. I grew up being the " quiet kid " and practically introverted. It never bothered me, considering the fact that it was basically a preference to keep to myself. However, the more I grew older, the more I understood society at its core value. Not trying to " toot my own horn " here, but I do believe that I am mainly different from other individuals around my age group. The only thing I ever have regrets of is drowning myself in procrastination to an extent as to where it's like a comfort zone rather than lacking motivation on a handful of days. I've sort of been experiencing alot due to how my life has evolved into over these years. Sometimes, I don't even know if I'm myself or not and sometimes, I perceive myself as changing into something I never sought out to become. A convoluted mindset such as my own is merely damaged due to how I care little to nothing about anything that doesn't fufill me. Honestly, at the end of the day, my favorite goal to accomplish is returning home from school, showering and playing Grand Theft Auto 5 Online to earn money, work on my channel on this account here or watch videos on my laptop. No matter if you're 12 or 29, you're still young and have a long way to go. If you're under 40, don't waste these precious early stages of youth like I did during my childhood to younger adolescence years. Godspeed to everyone and have a good day. 👍

[@uppishcub1617]

Wtf? Are you me? Seriously, the only way this could be more "literally me" is if you said you dropped out of high school a couple months ago.

[@melowmelow99]

Incredible video, I cried a lot from it, good tears, thank you for your hard work

[@ProfessorViral]

Of course, I'm glad the video was so impactful and hope those feelings lead somewhere great

[@EternalSeabed]

I feel like some adventures are taken to become mundane/establish something and that that could never take the joy/fear of starting them. I have to agree with wasted youth feeling like an imbalance of what you think is a good life and what you live, but that's precisely why taking a leap in every context could be a good thing.

[@HakarisInfiniteVoid]

Im wasting my 20s and I know I'm going to regret this. But everything is so damn expensive. Everything costs so much to do.

[@tashibalampkin8555]

8:50 A remedy called practice. I like that.

[@LobotomyTC]

I have spent the past year beating myself up over the fact that I haven't quit my job, quit paying taxes, quit talking to family, and haven't chosen to vanish into a random state park, attempting to forage for basic needs. That unironically feels like more of a meaningful existence than beating back the overwhelming urge to self-delete every single morning, so I can do the same thing that doesn't make me happy, or make me enough money. There's truly no civilization left in this world to run to. America used to be this planet's crown jewel of opportunity, but you couldn't swing a dead cat without hitting someone on their last straw today. I hate this life, and I regret dedicating that life to the simple-but-impossible plan of buying a small house and having a tiny modicum of stability. I don't care how dangerous it is, I want to return to nature, and whatever happens, happens. It's just not worth it anymore.

[@Iranoutofideasforachannelname]

I'm only 15, and I can already tell I am wasting my youth. The inability to make friends is a fucking disease. I have no clue what step I'm missing. Idk, maybe it's a lack of a common interest (I go to an art school so other car enthusiasts like myself are few and far between), but I don't think a common interest is the only thing I'm missing. I can never seem to establish a relationship with a singular person or make a friend group. The only success I've had as far as making friends is jamming my crowbar into pre established friend groups, but everyone else knows eachother so well, it just feels like I'm just there for no reason. Every day that passes, I become more and more afraid that I'll spend all this time trying to make friends and then, all of the sudden, I'm stood up there on the graduation stage, wondering what went wrong.

[@QWERTY-gp8fd]

u are not missing anything. unless u trynna get friend for dope. which in case u are missing best experience life has to offer.

[@avirabhatt8524]

amazing video essay, you have special vibe I can't describe it but I was hooked the entire time. Hope you continue creating art that you love !!

[@pixelmorgaming398]

I'm in a situationship, and it is because I am young and am unable to date. We both thought in the beginning that we were going to get married, but now. They think I barely know them, and they think they don't know me. Is this experience a complete waste if my life? Do es it mean anything? I have thought this. Otherwise I feel as though I am behind everyone my age, they are all more prepared for life, and they all actually enjoy it. I have no ability to enjoy having fun without thoughts creeping in that make me not enjoy it. I feel I have wasted so many things, and I have screwed so many times in my life. If I squander my youth, what is there for me later? What purpose do I have if I can't enjoy the things that make life worth living. I want to live, but I have to figure out how. Thank you so much for this video Prof. You deserve for more people to watch your videos, even if you don't want it to grow beyond the personal point. I think people need this.

[@Sand.]

hey professorviral, i just want to thank you for helping me find these amazing anime like sonny boy & madoka magica & others. also want to thank you for your amazing content that you make.

[@ProfessorViral]

Of course, im happy I can do so!