Taylor Swift is reflecting ahead of a huge milestone in her life.
Although the songstress doesn’t turn 30 until December, she got a head start on counting her blessings and the lessons learned over the last three decades in her latest feature for Elle magazine.
Related: Taylor Swift Reveals The Songs That ‘Healed’ Her After ‘Bad Breakups’
For her cover story, Tay penned a 30 Things I Learned Before Turning 30 list that highlights many of the highs and lows of her 20s and offers solid words of wisdom for her fans in the almost 30 club.
The End Game singer reveals everything from her very relatable love for Command tape to shockingly calling out “bullies” like Kim Kardashian West.
Here’s everything we learned from Taylor’s list:
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She Doesn’t Let Social Media Ruin Her Life
Like many other celebrities who’ve been outspoken about the downsides of social media, the 1989 singer warns us not to get caught up in the comparison culture and feeding into trolls online.
Her method of blocking out the noise? Turning off the comments on her posts. She explains:
“Social media can be great, but it can also inundate your brain with images of what you aren’t, how you’re failing, or who is in a cooler locale than you at any given moment. One thing I do to lessen this weird insecurity laser beam is to turn off comments. Yes, I keep comments off on my posts. That way, I’m showing my friends and fans updates on my life, but I’m training my brain to not need the validation of someone telling me that I look???. I’m also blocking out anyone who might feel the need to tell me to ‘go die in a hole ho’ while I’m having my coffee at nine in the morning. I think it’s healthy for your self-esteem to need less internet praise to appease it, especially when three comments down you could unwittingly see someone telling you that you look like a weasel that got hit by a truck and stitched back together by a drunk taxidermist. An actual comment I received once.”
She Takes A Shot At Kim Kardashian
Forgive us, but we not-so-secretly hoped that Taylor would address her past beef with Kim at some point in this.
Early on in her list, the pop singer warns that being sweet all the time can get you in trouble. Instead, she urges fans to stick to their guns and toughen up:
“Grow a backbone, trust your gut, and know when to strike back. Be like a snake—only bite if someone steps on you.”
Anyone else think that “snake” reference is a shot at KKW? Not convinced?
This anecdote thriving even though “someone” started a bullying campaign about her feels a lot more direct:
“I learned that disarming someone’s petty bullying can be as simple as learning to laugh. In my experience, I’ve come to see that bullies want to be feared and taken seriously. A few years ago, someone started an online hate campaign by calling me a snake on the internet. The fact that so many people jumped on board with it led me to feeling lower than I’ve ever felt in my life, but I can’t tell you how hard I had to keep from laughing every time my 63-foot inflatable cobra named Karyn appeared onstage in front of 60,000 screaming fans. It’s the Stadium Tour equivalent of responding to a troll’s hateful Instagram comment with ‘lol.’ It would be nice if we could get an apology from people who bully us, but maybe all I’ll ever get is the satisfaction of knowing I could survive it, and thrive in spite of it.”
Way to stick it to your haters, girl!
But we have a feeling she’ll be waiting for that apology a little bit longer!
She Doesn’t Care If You Still Think She’s #Canceled
Through all of the drama between Miz Swift and the Wests, the songstress learned who really has her back and who to keep close. She thanks her devoted fans for never turning their back on her:
“I learned that I have friends and fans in my life who don’t care if I’m #canceled. They were there in the worst times and they’re here now. The fans and their care for me, my well-being, and my music were the ones who pulled me through. The most emotional part of the Reputation Stadium Tour for me was knowing I was looking out at the faces of the people who helped me get back up. I’ll never forget the ones who stuck around.”
Her Mother’s Cancer Has Returned
Another of the most shocking admissions on this list is that Taylor’s mother’s cancer has returned. The 29-year-old admits that while both of her parents have struggled with the disease before, it doesn’t make dealing with the reality of it all any easier:
“I’ve had to learn how to handle serious illness in my family. Both of my parents have had cancer, and my mom is now fighting her battle with it again. It’s taught me that there are real problems and then there’s everything else. My mom’s cancer is a real problem. I used to be so anxious about daily ups and downs. I give all of my worry, stress, and prayers to real problems now.”
All Of The Random Things Tay Likes
Between all of the nostalgia and words of wisdom, Taylor lets us in on a few adulting hacks that everyone should know about.
She straight up gives Command tape a shout out pretty early on in her list. Yes, the tape you use to mount things when it’s not practical to put a hole in your wall? That tape.
She also takes vitamins like magnesium for muscle health and energy, and L-theanine which is a natural supplement to help with stress and anxiety.
And for those true Swifties out there who are curious about the singer’s favorite cocktails:
“I learned how to make some easy cocktails like Pimm’s cups, Aperol spritzes, Old-Fashioneds, and Mojitos because…2016.”
Or if you ever find yourself hosting a dinner with friends, here are a few of her go-to cooking recipes:
“I’ve always cooked a LOT, but I found three recipes I know I’ll be making at dinner parties for life: Ina Garten’s Real Meatballs and Spaghetti (I just use packaged bread crumbs and only ground beef for meat), Nigella Lawson’s Mughlai Chicken, and Jamie Oliver’s Chicken Fajitas with Molé Sauce. Getting a garlic crusher is a whole game changer. I also learned how to immediately calculate Celsius to Fahrenheit in my head. (Which is what I’m pretty sure the internet would call a “weird flex.”)”
Thanks for the solid advice Taylor!! 30 is going to look good on you, girl.
See the almost 30-year-old looking gorgeous in her spread for Elle (below) and click HERE for her full interview:
Thoughts??
[Image via Taylor Swift/Instagram.]
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