Endless Bliss | Happy Lifestyle Blog: 9 Things Monica Geller Taught Me About Being a Grown-Up.

9 Things Monica Geller Taught Me About Being a Grown-Up.

monica geller taught me friends
I've been trying to figure out who my favorite Friends character is for years. After watching the series from the beginning for the billionth time, I think I've finally chosen: Monica. I love Monica because I feel like she had to overcome so much: 

-- She was always teased for being fat when she was younger. She got back at the world by eating less, working out, and looking hot.

-- She was best friends with the prom queen, but it never made her feel inferior. Even though Rachel was always considered the beautiful one, and she got all the guys, all of the attention, and she was well-liked by her peers, Monica never had a foul bone in her body toward her. She was always happy for Rachel in spite of not having any of those things for herself.

-- She wasn't the favorite child. Monica had to live in the shadow of her brother, Ross, for her entire life, but she came out of it being an amazing chef, finding love and holding onto it (one marriage versus Ross's three), and just being happy about the things that she had. Even when her parents lost hope in her getting married (I mean, they took the money they were saving for her wedding and bought a beach house!), she didn't let that stop her from being happy. 

Monica is just such an awesome person because she's the misfit that everyone can relate to. She wasn't cool in high school, but in adulthood, she overcame all of the things that were supposed to hold her back. She gets genuinely excited about life, embraces all of her quirks, and loves unconditionally. She has so many lessons for millennials who are making that awkward transition into adulthood. 

1 | The real world sucks, but it's also pretty amazing.
From the pilot episode, Monica is already teaching us how being an adult works. When Rachel is cut off by her family because she ran out on her wedding, she cuts up her dad's credit cards, and Monica says "Welcome to the real world. It sucks. You're gonna love it." That pretty much sums up life as an adult. It's a wonderful misadventure.

monica geller gif


2 | Don't let anyone pick on you.
Monica has her quirks, and she'll be the first to admit it. She likes her furniture arranged a certain way. She has 11 different categories for towels. You can't eat in bed. Coasters must be used. The phone pen must remain next to the phone. She embraces all of these things about herself, and you should embrace your quirks too. She's not usually one to put someone down, but when someone judges her pretty harshly, she's quick witted and will turn the situation around in a second. 
One of my favorite instances of this happening was when she invited her ex-boyfriend, Richard's, son over for Thanksgiving dinner, and her friends were giving her a hard time about it. Instead of caving and giving in to their judgement, she pull a few insults out of her pocket: "Fine! Judge all you want, but married a lesbian, left a man at the alter, fell in love with a gay ice dancer, threw a girl's wooden leg in a fire, and live in a box!

3 | Don't let anyone interrupt you when you're talking.
Monica is always quick to let people know that when she's talking, no one better interrupt. She is a great commander of any room she walks in, and she does not, will not, let anyone steal her thunder. So when you have something important to say, don't let anyone else steal your limelight. If you're anything like Monica, you spent most of your childhood doing that. Don't let that habit sneak into your adult life. 

monica geller gif friends



4 | Keep your friends' secrets (until they start to reveal yours).
People say that secrets don't make friends, but Monica obviously knows that secrets are the basis of friendship. Monica was a great secret-keeper, because even though she was loud (like, really loud), she wasn't a blabbermouth. That is, until you made her into one. During season six, Monica wasn't sure she was ready to tell her parents she and Chandler were dating because she knew her parents didn't like him. When she found out that it was all Ross's fault, the secrets start flying from the mouths of both Ross and Monica. We found out Ross stole his dad's Playboys and Monica broke a porch swing. So many other fun secrets were revealed, which just goes to show that you should save the ammunition for a time when it will have the biggest impact.

5 | Apologize even when you don't think you're wrong.
One of my favorite things about Monica is that she was always the bigger person (in more ways than one at some points in her life). Even when she didn't believe she was at fault for a fight, she hated the feeling of being angry with the people she loved. More often than not, she was willing to put her pride aside and apologize rather than waste all of that extra energy being mad. 

monica geller gif friends


6 | Think before you act.
Monica was usually a pretty reasonable and thoughtful character. She was chockful of great advice no matter who was asking for it, even sometimes when the advice wasn't being asked of her at all. Even when she wasn't sure the other person could handle the truth or the advice she had to give, she was still so honest. One instance that comes to mind was when Rachel wanted to tell Ross she loved him after he had just married Emily. When she told Monica this, Monica asked her, "Do you have any idea how painful it is to tell someone you love them and not have them say it back?" She was a voice of reason, and while she did have her spontaneous moments (cough cough Chandler), she also liked to spend time to think things through. 

7 | Sometimes, you have to put your pride aside.
I couldn't write a post about Monica without bringing up the jellyfish incident. Even with two of her best friends in tow, she knew what she had to do. When she couldn't make it happen, she enlisted the help of her friends. Even though the thought of someone peeing on her was absolutely disgusting (especially for a clean freak like Monica), she had to put her pride aside to stop the pain from hurting so much. 

monica geller jellyfish gif friends


8 | It's not about whether you win or lose, but winning is better.
Like Monica, I have a pretty competitive spirit. Monica always liked to play it cool like she wasn't crazy competitive, but as soon as the cards were dealt or the ball was snatched, the gloves were off, and she went insane. Even though the lesson says that it's not about winning or losing, Monica made winning look so fun. 

9 | It's okay to be a dork.
As poised as Monica is, she's still just a fun girl and loves to grab hold of life's little joys and hang on to them. I think the best example of this was when she and Ross were invited to Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve and she and Ross broke out "the routine" from their childhood. 


Do you watch Friends? Who's your favorite character?

IMAGE: Albert Domasin

34 comments :

  1. I love Friends!! I go back and forth between loving and hating Monica, but I think the parts of her that drive me crazy are just because I see too much of myself in her. ;) I love this post because it really puts her in such a positive light. She does have so many good qualities, and I appreciate the new perspective!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I just started watching 'Friends' on Netflix recently & Monica is definitely one of my favorites (second to the Chandler/Joey bromance). There's so much we can learn from all six of the characters. This is a wonderful post, thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I admire Monica because she loved herself. She was best friend's with the popular girl but the differences between them didn't bother her. She was her parents' least fave child, but she still succeeded.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Friends is my favorite! Monica and Chandler are by far my favorite characters and watching them get together was the best (while everyone else seems to be obsessed with Ross and Rachel, they're by far my favorite couple.)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've just recently gotten into Friends and I love it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. All the hearts. I really struggled deciding which one is my favorite. I know that I'm most like Rachel, but a lot of my friends resent when I say they're most like Monica. I love the positivity of Monica in this post! I think we look at Monica a lot as a quirky clean freak, but she really offers a lot as far as strength in womanhood. She doesn't let anyone take her wind!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Love this so much. Now I want to watch an episode (or 5) right now! Ross has always been my favorite, followed closely by Rachel- but they all make me laugh so, so much.

    ReplyDelete
  8. This post is great! I just recently starting watching Friends for the first time since they have it on netflix and I am absolutely in love with it now! Although I was starting to think my fav. Character is Pheobe...You may have persuaded me to Monica's side!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I've never watched one episode of Friends but you've listed great nuggets of inspiration here. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
  10. hahaha, I justttt watched that episode where she and Ross did "the routine" the other night, and it was glorious! These are really great points! I can't decide who my favorite character is, but I love Friends! :D

    ReplyDelete
  11. Friends is the best! You should give it a shot!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Isn't it so amazing? It just keeps getting better and better. I love that so many people are discovering it now with Netflix! Phoebe is an awesome character too. I love them all. It really is hard to pick favorites.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I really love them all! Ross always makes me laugh. And Rachel...gosh, I just love her!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I love all of the characters, but Rachel is definitely a close second. And Joey...ah! I can't pick! I love Monica so much. I think it would be a compliment to be like her. I think they all have their quirks, but Monica's are definitely over the top.

    ReplyDelete
  15. That's so great! It's literally my favorite show ever. I love it so much! I'm glad you love it too!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I completely agree! Monica and Chandler were my favorite couple too. And I am one of the few that actually enjoyed the few episodes with Rachel and Joey together. The real question though: why did Joey and Phoebe ever get together? They were too perfect!

    ReplyDelete
  17. That's so true! I feel like a lot of people overlook her when picking their favorite character, but Monica has a lot of great qualities about her. She's definitely a strong character both inside and out.

    ReplyDelete
  18. The Chandler/Joey bromance is easily the most epic bromance to have ever existed. I love both of them so much! I completely agree - there are so many things to learn from all of the characters. I love them all!

    ReplyDelete
  19. That's so funny! I think Monica is such a great character, and I love all of her quirks. So glad I could point out some of her positive qualities! I love her so much!

    ReplyDelete
  20. i love monica and i love this post!! so great!! she really is so awesome. and i love how bull headed she is. and so competitive! she gives up her apartment she is so competitive! what i love about friends is how each character is so well formed

    ReplyDelete
  21. I love this post! 'Friends' is the best show ever. I've always considered Chandler my favourite character (Monica second!), but I should probably sit down and put this much thought into things! Awesome post.

    ReplyDelete
  22. hahah the routine!!!
    I agree, Monica is my favourite, though recently during my Netflix Binge of this show, I realized that I love Phoebe. When I was a kid I always thought she was weird, but as an adult I appreciate her more and more for being free spirited, fun, but still a grown up, just in her own way. Phoebe makes an even bigger transition than Rachael by the end of the series, all while being completely Phebes.


    Monica though, and Monica and Chandler, always (and still) make the show for me

    ReplyDelete
  23. God, that show was my childhood. My favorite was always Phoebe. She was just so quirky and hilarious. And Chandler. And Joey. Ok, all of them. I love all of them.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I liked the Rachel and Joey episodes too! I was totally shipping Phoebe and Joey the whole series. I really liked Mike too, but I was sad that Joey didn't end up with anyone in the end.

    ReplyDelete
  25. That episode is so HILARIOUS! I kind of want to learn it. Haha.

    ReplyDelete
  26. So happy you're a Monica lover too! Most people are all about Rachel (who I also love), but Monica is my favorite! I completely agree with everything you said. Every character sees so much growth and goes through so much throughout the show, and all of their backgrounds are so diverse! Such a great show.

    ReplyDelete
  27. It really is the best show ever. I love Chandler too! I love all of his awkward jokes. I just watched the episode where he and Monica were taking engagement photos and he couldn't smile. So hilarious!

    ReplyDelete
  28. The routine is so great! I love how dorky the two of them are. I love Phoebe too. She's just off in her own world loving everything about life. I also love how naive she is and how she always casually brings up her mom's suicide and her time on the streets.

    ReplyDelete
  29. I love Phoebe too! Her childhood was crazy tragic, but she just loves life so much! Yes, all of them. All of them are the best!

    ReplyDelete
  30. I'm so glad I'm not alone in that! I really thought Joey and Rachel were so adorable together. An unlikely couple, but they worked some how. I'm sad that Joey didn't end up with anyone either! I liked that Monica and Chandler had a room for him at their place, but I would have rather watched Joey get in a serious relationship and really fall in love! That's definitely something the show was missing.

    ReplyDelete
  31. I could never get sick of Friends. I grew up watching it and I've continued to watch it. 20 years after it's debut and it's still relevant and hilarious. I don't know if I could pick the character I relate to the most. They all have their moments! I do love that first quote by Monica though, I've been known to say it to my friends quite a bit when stuff goes wrong.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Such a cute post!! Monica is my favorite too - I feel like with her total sense of OCD and her silly, playful partner in Chandler, I can totally relate. Have you thought about submitting this to Buzzfeed? Totally Buzzfeed worthy!


    acupoftay.com

    ReplyDelete
  33. I LOVE Friends and have seen every episode but I've never actually thought about which character was my favorite! I think Chandler and Monica are my 2 favorites but it's hard to say. You brought up so many great points about Monica that I'd never heard of. And this post is more than Buzzfeed-worthy :)

    ReplyDelete
  34. I am so neurotic that I think I might actually be most like her than any other character on the show... gosh, I feel the sudden urge to binge watch the entire thing and not come up for air or go to work for days!

    ReplyDelete

09 10