Personal Development

Is your life boring and frustrating? You deserve more than that! Let’s take a look at how to romanticize your life.

What Does Romanticize Your Life Mean?

Have you ever seen a romance movie that gave you this warm and content feeling? Or maybe you went on a romantic date once.

Romanticizing your life means creating those kinds of feelings in your daily life. Basically, you want it to feel like life is one big romantic date instead of the boring normalcy many are used to. 

Fortunately, you can romanticize everything. You can romanticize your daily habits, work, and life as a student (even if it’s just online school). 

You only need to try instead of waiting for it to happen on its own. 

How To Romanticize Your Life

1. Find a fictional role model to emulate 

Perfectly mundane tasks become much more exciting when we know that our role model does them too. 

It doesn’t matter if your role model is real or fictional as long as they inspire and motivate you.

For example, imagine you are Rory Gilmore, taking a book outside and reading somewhere. 

Imagine you are Tony Stark the next time you have this super boring lab assignment in school. 

Even if it is a totally unrelated task, imagine doing it as if you were your role model. 

2. Make little changes to already existing tasks 

The easiest way to romanticize your life is by tweaking existing habits instead of adopting new ones. 

For example, if you rarely read books, it will be more difficult to romanticize your life by reading outdoors, like Blair Waldorf. 

However, if you are already reading daily, a slight tweak to the habit can bring big results with little effort. 

So take a look at your daily habits. Which of them correlates with what your role model is doing? 

Worst case scenario, it will only be brushing your teeth, going to bed, and eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner. 

Still, look at those habits and see how to make them more exciting. 

For example, brush your teeth with your non-dominant hand like Jim Kwik.

As you go to bed, try listening to soundtracks promoting deep sleep. 

And for breakfast, try out a few quick but fresh meals instead of cereal.

Build on what already exists before you try to overhaul your daily routine. 

3. Stop rushing around

The number one thing that zaps all romance out of life is stress. 

Imagine going on a date where your partner has scheduled every minute of it to a specific activity. So you’d be rushing to stick with the schedule, destroying all the romance of the moment. 

After all, romance is in its natural calm and relaxed.

So, if you want to romanticize your life, you should slow down. You can do that by cutting your to-do list to its essentials and getting your most time-consuming distractions under control. 

Also, expect delays and always plan accordingly. 

4. Seek out scenic locations to read, work, or chill

Our environment impacts our mood. Things as simple as the room’s wallpaper, a conversation your neighbor is having, or the clutter around you can trigger a constant buzz of annoyance in us. 

Sure, we can get rid of the clutter, but many other environmental factors are only for us to decide if we want to move to a different home. 

That’s why changing your scenery is a great way to trigger a more romantic mood. 

Pick one of the tasks you already do and relocate it to a more romantic location (library, café, or park). 

And don’t argue that there are no great locations around you. If none come to mind right now, go out and stop by different places. 

And if all fails or your introverted self doesn’t want to leave the house unnecessarily, then use the car or bus ride to admire the scenery around you. 

You could even walk to a bus stop further to take in more of your surroundings. 

Whatever floats your boat. 

5. Narrate your life

Your life will seem more romantic than you usually perceive it when you start narrating it as if you were the main character in a movie. 

You can do this through journaling in the form of letters to someone, through a video diary like the one in ‘Good Luck Charlie,’ or you can publish vlogs on YouTube.

All these pursuits will give your life a slight edge and make you focus more on the romantic aspects of it. 

(By the way, have you seen the movie ‘Stranger Than Fiction?’ The protagonist suddenly hears a voice narrating his boring life, always foreshadowing his imminent death. Predictably he freaks out. It’s hilarious to watch!) 

6. Be more intuitive and spontaneous

Sometimes, all your plans about romanticizing your life don’t feel right. You’re just not in the mood for it. 

These are the moments where the better choice is to follow your intuition and be spontaneous. 

Don’t do it if you don’t feel like hanging out in that cozy café. Romanticizing your life is meant to feel good and not forced. 

Humans require not only stability but also variety. You can’t plan everything perfectly. 

Just because you planned to have spaghetti next Friday doesn’t guarantee you will have an appetite for it when the day comes. 

Allow yourself to deviate from plans or even not make concrete plans at all. 

7. Define what romantic means to you

In the end, there is, of course, no one size fits all solution to romanticizing your life. 

You have to figure out what a romantic life means to you.

You can do this by going through Pinterest and sticking relevant pins to a board. After a couple dozen pins, this board will show you clear patterns of what you consider a romantic life. 

You can even make a collage out of them and use them as the background on your digital devices. 

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I hope you found some helpful ideas on how to romanticize your life. For example, if you had to rate your life on a scale from 1 to 10, how romantic would you say is your life? 

As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter. Also, feel free to reach out with content ideas you’d like to see. Perhaps, we’ll choose your idea next! 

Until next time, Felicity Seeker! 

Do you love Harry Potter and can’t get enough of it? Then you’ll like this list! Here are 11 life lessons we can learn from Ravenclaw.

As with all of these Harry Potter lists, remember that many of these ideas come from the fandom instead of the books or movies. 

There are many characteristics of the four houses that big parts of the fandom have agreed on, and the following life lessons are some of them.

Read also: 11 Life Lessons To Learn From Slytherin | How To Be A True Slytherin

Read also: Reading List For Personal Growth

1. Seek Knowledge for knowledge’s sake

Knowledge is potential power, and Ravenclaws are aware of this. But few of them truly care. 

They don’t aspire to hold powerful positions in society. Instead, they enjoy knowledge for knowledge’s sake. 

That’s also why they often find reading about random topics that piqued their curiosity instead of issues targeted to be useful to them. 

In our informational age, it is incredibly easy to gain new information. Yet only a minority of people use the internet and books for purposes other than entertainment. 

2. Create! – that’s what humans are meant to do

Ravenclaws embody the essence of what makes humans so different from their mammal peers: Intellect and creativity. 

Our capability to learn new information is unrivaled in the animal kingdom. 

But even more unique is our ability to create new things, be it houses we live in, school systems for better education, or genetically modified food. 

Animals might create a nest or den to live in, but they don’t experiment with ways to improve that structure. 

Creativity is part of what makes us more than mere animals. This makes it all the more surprising that many humans dedicate little time to creating things. Even worse, some people seem almost exclusively focused on destroying things. 

Ravenclaws, however, embrace their creativity firmly; look at Luna Lovegood being involved with the Quibbler production or Rowena Ravenclaw and her Room of Requirement. 

A life lesson to learn from Ravenclaw is that we should be more creative, whether that means writing fanfictions in private or making a living as content creators. Just create something, anything.

3. Look beyond the obvious and see what others miss 

It can be difficult to look beyond what you see. That’s why many people shy away from spirituality, and fake news is immediately taken for face value. 

While Slytherins can see the less obvious on a psychological level, Ravenclaws see it on a more worldly level. 

Think of Luna Lovegood and her almost seer-like remarks. She views the world in an entirely different way than the rest of us. 

Sure, some of it may be far-fetched, but a lot is spot on and helps her navigate life much more smoothly. 

When was the last time you tried to look beyond the obvious? 

For example, look at school peers or coworkers. Surely, you’ve given some of them mental labels by now (e. g. know-it-all, lazy, naive, spoilt, etc.).

Try to look beyond that for a change. Actively seek out different explanations for their behavior that you have yet to consider. 

Do the same with the news you consume. Always consider different sources of information and know that nobody is ever entirely unbiased.  

4. Be curious and search for answers 

Children are naturally curious. They ask questions about everything and annoy their parents during their ‘WHY’-phase. 

As we grow older, we lose big parts of this curiosity. Sometimes we don’t question further because it seems like too much trouble, and other times we think we already know everything there is to know. 

But a true Ravenclaw is a person who is curious about everything. They research and ask questions until that curiosity is satisfied or, rather, until they latch onto one of the many new questions that came up in their research. 

As the Ravenclaws show, one should never underestimate the importance of curiosity in learning. 

Curiosity is a big reason children learn so quickly and why Ravenclaws are the high performers at Hogwarts. 

Try to explore your curiosity a bit more in the coming days. Do research on topics you’ve never fully understood but always brushed over. 

Ask a friend about their current obsession and dive into that for a day or two to see if you’ll also latch on. 

Just give it a try – that’s what a true Ravenclaw would do. 

5. Sharpen the weapon that is language

“Wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure.” – Luna Lovegood.

Ravenclaws have a large vocabulary. It comes with all the reading. 

That’s why they can express themself so succinctly and know exactly how to intelligently tell someone off.

A quick tongue is not only useful during presentations and negotiations but also for dating. 

So endeavor to up your wit levels. 

Read more challenging reading material than social media captions and instant messages. 

Play act like your favorite witty character while you’re alone, to slowly adopt some of their mannerism. 

Just don’t assume that it is an innate trait. It can very well be learned. 

6. Get in touch with your intuition

One of the life lessons we can learn from Ravenclaw is to get more in touch with our intuition.

Rowena Ravenclaw was not a woman purely driven by logic and intellect. In fact, her intuition often led her so accurately that it seemed almost eerie to the other founders. 

Luna Lovegood is much the same in that way, and Harry Potter, who could have been sorted into any of the houses, also has those moments. 

You might wonder how you can get in touch with your intuition. Thankfully, many coaches and courses can help you with that nowadays. 

They will hold your hand and help you eliminate mindset and energy blocks that make connecting with your intuition harder. 

But ultimately, it comes down to practice. The more you feel like you can trust your intuition, the easier it will be to feel it out. 

One way to trust your intuition is through games. For example, when you have no idea how to answer during multiple-choice quiz games, pick the question that feels good before you’ve even given yourself any time to think. 

Or, during Sudoku, put the number into the field that feels right when you are stuck. 

The more little successes you have while using your intuition, the easier it will get. 

But is it good to follow your intuition?

The book ‘Thinking Fast and Slow’ mentions multiple studies that show just why you shouldn’t trust your intuition. Time and time again people have fallen prey to biases. 

But then again, there is a difference between guessing and listening to your intuition. 

Ultimately, it’s up to you when to follow your intuition and when to apply logical thinking.

 

7. Be unique and stand out

Nobody ever got remembered in history because they were perfectly ordinary. 

And I bet what draws you most to your loved ones is never their ‘normality.’ No, it’s their unique quirks. 

Luckily, you don’t have to come up with things that will make you unique. You already have them within you. 

In other words, authenticity makes you stand out from the rest – to be unapologetically yourself. 

However, being authentic doesn’t justify you being a nasty asshole who only complains about all their problems instead of attempting to fix them. 

In a way, that nasty version of you is not your true authentic self, but instead, your real self is hidden behind all that baggage and waiting to come out.

A true Ravenclaw is a person who stands out from the crowd; think of Luna Lovegood and her quirky Quidditch hat or Filius Flitwick’s squeaky excitement as he fell off the books. 

Have you been trying to blend in? In what way are you trying to ‘normalize’ yourself? 

8. The pen is mightier than the sword, but the sword decides who holds the pen

Ravenclaws can sometimes be idealistic. They know that knowledge can be power, and that makes them feel superior. 

They think they only need to get all the facts straight and do ‘proper’ research, and then everyone will hear them out. 

Sooner or later, they will all make the frustrating experience that that’s not how our world works. 

Just remember how scandalized and frustrated Hermione was when she was met by the willful blindness and vicious lies of Umbridge and Fudge. 

She could scarcely believe that they chose to ignore the facts. 

In fact, the suppression of truth through people in power became so bad that the Ministry officially accused muggle-borns of stealing their wands from ‘proper’ wizards. 

This highlights the difference between Slytherins and Ravenclaws beautifully. While Ravenclaws focus all their effort on acquiring knowledge, Slytherins strive to gain knowledge and power. 

It’s unsurprising that, in the end, there are more Slytherins in positions of power whose knowledge is referred to than Ravenclaws. 

10. You can’t live life with your head in the clouds

Since this list is about the life lessons we can learn from Ravenclaw, we also have to talk about negative personality traits the Ravenclaws have come to terms with. 

For example, they must learn how to stop losing track of time. Luna Lovegood is a perfect example of someone who constantly has her head in the clouds. 

But she’s far from the only Ravenclaw with that tendency. The ravens are always contemplating something, but only sometimes is it relevant to what is going on in the physical world at that moment. 

And that’s ok, as long as the topic you’re thinking about doesn’t make you lose track of time. So, pulling your head out of the clouds will be hard if that happens. 

Thankfully, there are some things you can do about this. 

If you are on your own and want to let your mind run free, then set yourself a timer or five. 

This also works if your mind keeps drifting off unconsciously. Set a timer for recurring intervals as a reminder to focus on the task at hand. 

Another technique can be to write down whatever seems urgent for your mind to consider immediately. Once you’ve written it down somewhere, you can rest assured that it won’t be forgotten. 

And if all that fails, consider taking up meditation and reducing your time on ‘short media.’ 

TikTok and Insta Stories lower your attention span to a few seconds. No wonder you struggle during 90 min lectures!

11. Not everything is a competition

Some Ravenclaws are too competitive when it comes to the knowledge department. 

They pride themself in their knowledge and want to prove it to everyone around them. 

Sooner or later, they will learn what happens if you are too competitive: You upset everyone around you. 

Let other people raise their hand in class, too, for heaven’s sake! And if you do answer, make it brief, and don’t use the opportunity for a presentation about everything else you know. 

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These were the 11 life lessons we can learn from Ravenclaw. Do you have another lesson to add? Share your thoughts with us!

If you are determined to bring out your inner Ravenclaw, comment ‘DIADEM‘ down below.

Until next time, Felicity Seeker!

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The Harry Potter books and movies don’t focus much on the badgers of Hogwarts. Yet there are so many life lessons we can learn from Hufflepuff.

Let us look at what makes people like Helga Hufflepuff, Newt Scamander, Pomona Sprout, and Cedric Diggory Hufflepffs.

Read also: 11 Life Lessons We Can Learn From Ravenclaw

Read also: 33 Justice Quotes | Quotes About Justice And Fairness

1. Work hard, play hard

Hufflepuffs are hard workers and have no issues putting their blood, sweat, and tears into the task. 

But the badgers are no workaholics and highly value friendships and social interactions. 

That’s why all their hard work is balanced by a flourishing social life.

2. Kindness pays back tenfold

Hufflepuffs have no problem being the one who provides first and takes second. In fact, they often don’t even expect reciprocation. And yet, it tends to find them.

People may not remember the words you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel. 

Even just one memory of kindness will make others feel indebted to you or, at the very least, more inclined to help you later, should you need it. 

Think about how Cedric paid back the favor by giving Harry a hint to take a bath with the golden egg. 

Kindness also has a ripple effect outside of the relevant parties. It will give you a better chance of making a good first impression.

Of course, there will always be those who take advantage of your giving nature. 

But if you keep your wits about yourself, those people should be easy to spot and avoid. 

3. There is no need to get upset over small things but if necessary, be ready to unleash the fierce badger within 

Everybody thinks Hufflepuffs are a bunch of doofus – gullible, soft, and easy to walk all over. 

And for the most part, their happy nature supports that assumption. 

But never forget that Hufflepuff’s mascot is the badger! When angered, badgers are truly vicious creatures. 

Similarly, you should never push a Hufflepuff too far, or you’ll painfully regret it. 

A life lesson we can learn from Hufflepuffs is that there is no sense in letting insignificant matters upset us. Instead, it’ll only waste energy that could be better occupied in more satisfying ways. 

However, should the time for rage come, allow yourself to unleash hell upon those who’ve crossed you. 

4. Let them underestimate you

Most people crave acknowledgment and attention and want to stand out and be praised for their skills. 

Of course, there is a certain time when you should stand out, during job interviews, for example. 

But being underestimated can have its advantages as well. 

Firstly, you won’t draw as much competition, enabling you to work with less disruption and less stress. 

Secondly, once you do decide to stand out, it will be all the more spectacular because nobody expected it from you. 

Having Cedric as the Hogwarts TWT champion was much more of a surprise than a Gryffindor or Slytherin champion would have been. 

Seeing Neville suddenly running around with a sword and beheading snakes was far more unsettling than seeing Ron doing that would have been. 

Being underestimated is not bad as long as you know how to show your true potential when it counts. 

5. Always be truthful

Hufflepuffs value truthfulness; only severe circumstances can convince them to lie – for example, in the effort to hide the DA from the pink toad, aka High Inquisitor. 

You might be surprised at how many little white lies you tell others to please people. 

In a way, photoshopped pictures, fake designer clothes, and photoshoots with rented sports cars are all lies people present to the world. 

The problem with lies is that they are often revealed and damage your reputation much more than the truth ever would have. 

So stay truthful, even if it seems hard. 

6. Fight for justice

Justice is one of the topics in which the badgers’ fierceness shines through. 

True Hufflepuffs won’t stand for discrimination, corruption, and unlawfulness. 

They would be the ones organizing demonstrations and pushing for equality.

Just think of Amelia Bones, who tirelessly fights against corrupt politicians and death eaters as the Head of the DMLE. 

7. Hard work alone is not enough

While Helga Hufflepuff’s house is full of hard workers, her students are less outstanding academically than the Ravenclaws or Slytherins.

This is mostly because all that hard work is directed to topics of interest, which are not necessarily the topics they ‘should’ focus on.

Look at Newt Scamander, who cared for little else but his magical creatures. 

Therefore, a life lesson from Hufflepuff is that you need to focus your hard work on the right things, or else you will not get the desired results. 

8. Happiness can be found when you connect with nature

Hufflepuffs are often connected with nature; for example, Pomona Sprout is a herbologist, Newt Scamander is a magi zoologist, and the Hufflepuff dorms are filled with greenery. 

Nowadays, many of us sadly spend little time in or near nature. So it’s time we reconnect with the world around us!

Go and purchase yourself a plant or start taking short walks through nature. Any connection at all can already provide happiness.

9. Patience can prevent a lot of effort and stress

Hufflepuffs are patient. They don’t rush a plant to grow faster but are content to wait for every small change. 

They also show their patience when working with skittish magical beasts. 

In contrast to the often hectic and impatient Gryffindors, the badgers succeed more often on the first try and make fewer mistakes. 

Look at Hermione, who couldn’t wait to study all the elective subjects and ended up burning herself out. Instead, she could have self-studied the subjects during the summer holidays and then taken her OWLs. 

So remember to be patient with the pursuit of your goals. Building a business takes time, as does climbing the corporate ladder and creating a good reputation and a deeply intimate relationship. 

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These were the 9 life lessons we can learn from Hufflepuff that I spotted throughout the fandom. So what was your favorite lesson? 

If you are determined to embody the best parts of the Hufflepuff spirit, comment ‘LOYAL.’

Until next time, Felicity Seeker!

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Do you aspire to belong to the house of the brave lions? If so, these life lessons will show you how to be a true Gryffindor.

Over the years, countless Harry Potter fanfictions have been created. While every author has a unique view of the wizarding world and its intricacies, most can agree on some details. 

The following life lessons to learn from Gryffindor are some of the common themes I have noticed throughout many stories. 

Read also: 9 Life Lessons We Can Learn From Hufflepuff

Read also: 9 Success Tips From My Hero Academia (BNHA)

1. Real life happens outside your comfort zone

Gryffindors are daring; they like the rush of the uncertainty of adrenaline that comes with stepping into the unknown. 

They never stay too long inside their comfort zone but expand and shift it constantly. 

Habits and routines only satisfy them for so long before they feel the need to experience more variety again. 

When was the last time you stepped outside your comfort zone? How long since you switched up your daily routine? 

If you are like most people, then too long. 

If you want to embrace your inner Gryffindor, then go get uncomfortable!

2. Speak up for what you believe in

Gryffindors have strong beliefs, and when they see something they consider wrong, they have no problem speaking up and trying to set it right. 

Shout-outs, demonstrations, and campaigns are tools that appeal to Gryffindors. 

They will never be comfortable just turning a blind eye and looking out for their interests. 

But careful, a life lesson to learn from Gryffindors is that these strong beliefs can easily make you small-minded and bigoted. 

Think of James Potter, Sirius Black, Percy, and Ron Weasly – all set in their ways, judgemental, and unwilling to look beyond the stereotypes they’ve built for others.

As a Gryffindor, that is something you will always need to watch out for and counteract. 

3. A cheated win is no win at all 

Gryffindors are noble and proud and want to win but through their own merit and without cheating. 

Think of Harry Potter, who told Cedric about the dragons for the first Triwizard Tournament task.

4. You should help others if you are in a position to do so 

Gryffindors like to stand up for those in need if they are in a position to do so. 

Think of how Harry helped Hagrid with his Dragon, Sir Nick with his Deathday Party, Fleur’s sister Gabrielle during the second TWT task, and all those muggle-borns during the Ministry break-in. 

This character trait is something Gryffindors have in common with the Hufflepuffs, although the latter is often more about emotional support than fighting someone’s battles. 

5. Follow your passion

The Gryffindor house colors are red and gold. Red represents the fierce passion of the lions. 

No matter what they end up dedicating their time to, it is sure to be something they are immensely passionate about. 

Think of Oliver Woods’s passion for Quidditch, Neville’s passion for herbology, Charlie Weasley’s passion for dragons, the twins’ passion for jokes, and Hagrid’s passion for magical creatures. 

One life lesson to learn from Gryffindors is to refrain from settling for a job or relationship we are not passionate about. 

6. Don’t give up, no matter the odds 

Gryffindors don’t shy away from fighting a losing battle. Instead, many consider them recklessly foolish for clinging to impossible tasks, while Gryffindors argue they are heroically persistent. 

The final verdict on which of the two is true usually depends on the outcome. And the outcome often depends on pure luck. 

But granted, if you don’t keep going, you will never know if you could have succeeded. 

7. Be careful of your pride; learn to pick your battle

The lion is, in its nature, a very proud animal. The same applies to Gryffindor’s. 

Should their family, house, or personal pride be slighted, Gryffindors will react harshly. 

That kind of thoughtless defense can often get them into unnecessary trouble. 

As a Gryffindor, you need to learn how to pick your battle. Sometimes it is far better to stay quiet and to let people think they’ve won the war.

Remember, nobody can insult you without your consent. The insults only matter if you let them touch you. 

Ask yourself this: Would you have felt insulted or rather slightly amused if the same slight had come from a toddler throwing a temper tantrum? 

8. The world is not black and white; don’t judge too quickly

Gryffindors often struggle with righteousness. 

Look at easy it was for them to condemn every Slytherin from the moment they got sorted. Think of Hermione, who often thinks of herself as some enforcer of rules and refuses to see house elves as creatures with different needs and interests. 

Remember how Professor McGonagall wouldn’t even consider the children warning about the philosopher stone. 

As a Gryffindor, you should always remember that the world is not all black and white. In fact, there are endless shades of grey and very little of pure black and pure white. 

Remember that your opinion about things can be wrong and should not be forced upon others. 

9. Be careful who you trust

Gryffindors tend to be very trusting. Because they place such a high value on honesty between friends, they often do not consider that others might think differently. 

This can sometimes even lead them to turn a blind eye to suspicious behavior because they wouldn’t dare accuse a friend of dishonesty. 

James and Lily Potter could have easily avoided the traitor issue by making their secret keeper swear an unbreakable vow. That’s something a Slytherin would think of doing. 

Even a true Gryffindor is not without faults, but being aware of them is a big step toward overcoming them. 

10.No brains and all brawl is not enough

Slytherins like to accuse Gryffindors of acting without thinking. While it is true that Gryffindors certainly don’t overthink every situation in the same way that the snakes do, that doesn’t mean they lack smarts. 

Dumbledore, McGonagall, Hermione, and Lily Potter all show that Gryffindor has its fair share of brainpower. 

And even people like Ron, who would have never made it in Ravenclaw, have their unique brilliance. But, in his case, it is strategy, especially but not only chess strategy. 

11. Bavery doesn’t mean the absence of fear

Many people misguidedly equate bravery with fearlessness. 

This is quite ironic, considering a truly fearless person would never need an ounce of bravery. 

Consider this: Using an elevator is a very unexciting experience for you. However, for someone with severe claustrophobia, it is a monumental feat that requires a significant amount of bravery. 

Neville Longbottom is a good example of this. For a long time, the timid boy was scared of virtually everything. Still, he kept going and attended classes with his boggart. 

While others belittled him, Neville probably showed more bravery daily than most others. 

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Do you have any tips for how to be a true Gryffindor to add to the list? I’d love to hear your ideas. 

If you are a true lion, comment ‘ROAR’ below and show your house pride! 

Until next time, Felicity Seeker! 

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While the Harry Potter books and movies don’t go into much detail about the serpent house, there are a lot of life lessons to learn from Slytherin.

The Harry Potter fandom has gone into great detail in describing the house of the cunning and ambitious. 

Many ideas about their values and characteristics overlap and paint a clear picture of what it means to be a true Slytherin.

Here are some of the life lessons we can learn from Slytherin.

Read also: 11 Life Lessons To Learn From Gryffindor | How To Be A True Gryffindor

Read also: 12 Powerful Ways To Be Confident | Confidence Tips for Boss Babes

1. Strive for excellence but be subtle about it

Slytherins are an ambitious bunch. They strive to achieve excellence in whatever they do. 

Unsurprisingly, this shows a strong dedication to their studies through personal effort and study groups. 

However, unlike a certain know-it-all Griffindor, Slytherins don’t call attention to their knowledge and skills, at least not in such blatantly obvious ways. 

Instead, they know exactly how often to raise their hand and when to show their skills to leave a strong impression.

2. With strong allies, you can take on the world

Slytherins stick together. Like Professor McGonagall said to the first years, your house is your family. 

And considering all the ambition and cunningness Slytherins surround themselves with, it is hardly surprising that this group of people makes it far in Wizarding Brittain. 

Here are just a few examples: 

• Merlin (wizard extraordinaire)
• Tom Marvolo Riddle (Dark Lord)
• Severus Snape (youngest Potion Master in however long)
• Lucius Malfoy (influential politician)

Of course, there are also housemates like Grabbe and Goyle (who are much more Hufflepuff material, in my opinion).

But Slytherin is still a good example of how strong allies can help push you further.

3. Networking is a must

If you know the right people, the right doors will open for you much more easily. 

The perfect example is Horace Slughorn, who started ‘collecting’ influential people early on in his Slug Club.

Helping them make connections easier guaranteed they would feel eager to provide favors for him. 

Overall, Slughorn built a powerful network of contacts that served him well in life. 

4. Control your emotions, or they control you 

Harry Potter and Ron Weasly are perfect examples of people with horrible emotional control. 

Their fuse blows at the most predictable comments, no matter how many times they’ve been through the same spiel. 

Not only is that rather pathetic, but it also leaves you glaringly vulnerable to attacks. 

After all, if you’re emotional, you don’t think clearly and are more likely to mess up. 

That’s why true Slytherins strive to control their emotions early on. They study Occlumency, which includes regular meditation.  

5. What happens in the family stays in the family

There are always those people who drag their family issues into public, searching for validation. 

But to be honest, it damages your reputation and privacy immensely when people hear about who fought or cheated with whom.

Very little trust will be placed in you if you prove to be an unreality secret keeper, not to mention that it is incredibly easy to use the dirt on your family to hurt you or them. 

Slytherins are scorned by the rest of Hogwarts and, as a result, big parts of the British wizarding society. 

They can’t afford to show cracks in their own ranks. 

That’s why intra-house issues are resolved inside the house and do not carry outside the common room. 

For example, there is no way Draco Malfoy didn’t annoy big parts of Slytherin’s house with his foolishness and bragging. Yet to the other houses, it always seemed like Malfoy had the support of the serpents. 

6. Prepare to face backlash – prepare to be misunderstood

Slytherins produced the last Dark Lord and multiple Death Eaters. Therefore, it is not surprising that the public would immediately stereotype all Slytherins as evil, no matter how inaccurate that might be. 

Cunning and ambition are character traits often viewed with much suspicion by those without them. 

As such, a true Slytherin should always prepare to face backlash. 

They will succeed despite it, no matter what it takes.

7. Manners maketh man

True Slytherins have impecable manners. They know those good manners are the best way to make a good first impression. 

Manners show that you are cultivated and that you respect others. And who doesn’t like to be respected?

In many western countries, there is little focus on manners nowadays. Instead, everyone seems to want to be ‘casual.’ 

Fortunately, this will only make us stand out even more if we appear well-mannered.

You should know how to address people of different ranks and if you visit a foreign country, make sure to research the various customs. For example, handshakes are not universal gestures of greeting.  

Practice table manners too. Sitting next to a Ronald Weasly will ruin anyone’s appetite.

In the end, some people might see you as stiff if you act older than you are, but it is always easier to loosen up later than to try and convince somebody that you usually have better manners.

8. There is always an easier, more subtle, more effective way to do things

Slytherins are a bit perfectionistic. They are always eager to achieve more in easier and more subtle ways. They learn from past mistakes and improve upon them. 

When was the last time you looked at your daily activities and tried to make them better, easier, or faster? 

Life is about continuous improvement. If you don’t grow, you die. And those who grow the most succeed the most. 

9. Set yourself up to survive every eventuality

Slytherins are, first and foremost, self-serving, and their well-being always stands higher than some cause. 

As such, Slytherins set themself up in a way that guarantees they will survive no matter the outcome of certain events. 

Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape are great examples of this. 

Malfoy was cunning enough to go from one of the Dark Lords high ranking death eaters to a respectable and powerful member of the post-war wizarding world and straight back into being one of the most valuable Death eaters. 

With his spying activities for both sides, Snape would have also done well, no matter which side won, had he not died in the final battle. 

And Horace Slughorn, even though he had incriminating information on Voldemort, was valuable enough as potions master for the Dark Side to try and recruit him. 

For us non-magical, this can mean setting up your income streams so that it won’t matter if a financial crisis hits or you lose your job. 

10. Understand how humans think

True Slytherins are masters at manipulation. They know exactly what to say and what not to get people to do what they want without realizing they are doing so. 

Think about how a young Tom Riddle gets Slughorn to talk about the creation process of Horcruxes. 

And how Dumbledore (even though he was a Griffindor, there is no way the Sorting hat didn’t consider Slytherin for him) used Harry’s fame to get Slughorn to teach at Hogwarts again. 

Perhaps you also know the story of Tom Sawyer, who talked the kids, that had been ridiculing him into painting the fence for a fee. 

11. Whether through words, skills, or money, make sure you can defend yourself

You might not have to fear an attack from death eaters or corrupt politicians, but you should always know how to defend yourself. 

This does not only include physical self-defense, although especially women can benefit from that. 

It also means building a legal defense and learning how to negotiate through deals and accusations. 

These two are most likely and hopefully the only ‘attacks’ you will have to deal with. Yet they can be devastating if you are not prepared. 

And one life lesson to learn from Slytherin is to always be prepared! 

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Which was your favorite life lesson to learn from Slytherin? 

If you aspire to be a true Slytherin, comment ‘SALAZAR‘ down below. 

Until next time, Felicity Seeker! 

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