5 Life Lessons We Can Learn from Justin Bieber

MusicFeed

Whether you’ve had Bieber Fever since his first song was released, or if you could care less about the international pop sensation, Justin Bieber is difficult to avoid – even if you’ve been living in a remote bamboo tree house since 2009.
 
You won’t find any of Justin’s music in my personal playlists, and if we’re being truthful, I’m perpetually confused about his appeal. But I’ve found that despite what you may think about an individual, there’s plenty you can learn from them. Even a stranger walking down the street can teach you something if you’re willing and open to the possibility.
 

Even a stranger can teach you something if you’re open to the possibility.

 
Peel the layers back far enough and even mundane guilty pleasures can contain nuggets of enlightenment. The celebrity spotlight is always on the Biebs, which is how the public knows and hears so much about his every move.
 

So without further ado, here are 5 enlightening life lessons we can learn from Justin Bieber:

1. When you don’t know something, it’s okay to admit it

At the Summerburst music festival in Stockholm this past June, Justin refused to sing his latest hit “Despacito” simply because he didn’t know the lyrics to the chorus, which are all in Spanish.
 
What followed was some fan disappointment and a water bottle hurled at his head (he was fine). Obviously as an artist, he should probably know the lyrics to his own song . . .
 
But aside from that, at least he didn’t try to ad-lib the lyrics, which he’s done in the past. He just laid it out there to thousands and thousands of screaming fans, which must be an especially difficult feat for someone who is under pressure and scrutiny 24/7. This teaches us an important lesson that it’s okay to admit when you don’t know something, rather than trying to pretend otherwise.
 

The best thing we can do in these situations is own them, learn from them, and be more prepared next time.

 
We all feel pressured at times to know more, do more, and somehow “be better,” but it’s an important reminder that we’re only human, we all make mistakes, and the best thing we can do in these situations is own them, learn from them, and be more prepared next time.
 
 

2. On the path to success, strategic planning goes a long way

On June 21, Justin’s wax figure was unveiled at Madame Tussauds in Orlando, Florida on what also happened to be “National Selfie Day.” While it’s definitely Bieber’s marketing/PR team that deserves the credit for this planning, it’s an impressively strategic business move.
 
At about 90 million Instagram followers, he’s among the top 10 users on the entire social media platform, right behind the likes of Beyoncé. The lines to take a selfie with his wax figurine on opening day must have been astronomical. Talk about a successful self-promotion campaign!
 
Moral of the story – just by planning ahead, you can be that much more successful in life. Whether you’re a pop star, a business executive, or an average Joe, being strategic and intentional in your planning can only help you on your path to success.
 

3. No matter how successful you get, remain accountable for your own decisions

Recently, Spotify launched a social media ad that read: Justin Bieber. Now Latin King. Cue the outrage of the Latin-American community who swiftly pointed out that hmm, it might be slightly insensitive to crown a white Canadian artist as the king of a culture that he has no formal identity in.
 
Surely the creative team at Spotify had shining intentions to highlight his role in the remix of Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito,” but the original artists weren’t even acknowledged in the ad . . . plus the obvious – they never should’ve called Justin ‘Latin royalty’ to begin with. Whether he had any say in giving the ad the green light can’t be determined, but the ad was subsequently pulled after about a week.
 
We learn here that even if someone else has your best intentions in mind, it’s always wise to make decisions on your own behalf. When it comes to morals and ethics, only you should dictate your internal compass of what’s acceptable. No matter how big, powerful, busy, or successful you become, it’s crucial to keep your ego – and decisions – in check.
 
 

4. Take time to reflect on your past and learn from your mistakes

In 2014, the Justin Bieber was caught drag racing his Lamborghini in Miami. Personally, when I take my Lamborghini for a spin, I try to attract as little attention as possible, but the pop star was also allegedly under the influence and driving with an expired license.
 
Three years, 12 hours of anger management and $50,000 donated to charity later, Justin hopefully learned his lesson. He did take some time to reflect on his actions and use his fame to send a humbled message to those who view him as a role model by posting a mugshot collage on his Instagram with the hash tags: #jailsnotacoolplacetobe, #notfun and #neveragain.
 
We all make mistakes (revisiting #1), but learning from these mistakes is so important, and bonus points if we can turn what we learned into a lesson for others.
 
 

5. It’s always wise to keep your private affairs . . . private

Justin Bieber and fellow pop star Selena Gomez had a very intense, on-again, off-again relationship that was highly publicized for about half a decade. There were rumors about drugs and alcohol, about him cheating, and song lyrics from both parties that were brooding and passive aggressive. For those following the relationship, it was probably very enthralling. For them? Exhausting.
 
The pangs of teenage heartbreak can be devastating, so we can only imagine how much worse it is when the media documents every second of it. Once your social media page becomes a digital graveyard of your former relationship, is it disingenuous to move on by flaunting photos of your latest alleged bae or publicly pick a fistfight with theirs?
 
Either way – and even for us non-pop stars – there are plenty of ways to avoid airing the dirty laundry of whatever’s going on between you and your partner . . . by keeping it just between you and your partner.
 
 
The point is, whether you’re a Grammy award-winning recording artist or prefer to sing in the safety of your own vehicle that’s definitely not a Lamborghini, we can all take a page from each other’s book to grow our own chapters.
 
Own up to your mistakes, plan ahead, be accountable for yourself, learn from your past, and keep your private life private. These are simple life lessons we can all benefit from. Thanks, Biebs!
 

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