MINIONS : 7 Lessons College Students Can Learn from ‘Despicable Me 2′

Here are some lessons from the movie that every college student should know. Alert: spoilers below.

LIVE LIKE A MINION

We love minions because they are silly. Don’t take yourself too seriously and be able to make fun of yourself. Minions wear fruit hats, act as Gru’s maid, or wear a pro golfer outfit. Don’t be afraid to be yourself and find entertainment in the little things in life.

ASK SOMEONE ON A DATE

In college, it can be tempting to spend time studying with someone or casually spend time with them at parties. While it may take lots of practicing on a phone with your version of a minion and all of the nerves you can muster, ask someone on a date. But, Gru’s mandate to Margo to stay 6 feet away from Antonio at all times may be a bit excessive. Not only will it be refreshing to chat 1-on-1 over coffee or dinner, but you will find that the person has many interesting qualities that might not have come out studying biology or talking at a party. And, you never know if the person you ask to coffee is equally intrigued by you.

GROW UP AND PLAY VIDEO GAMES – IF THAT IS YOUR VERSION OF HEAVEN

Antonio artfully explained to Margo that he wanted to grow up and play video games. There are many ways to have a job that involves playing video games – be a graphic artist for a video game company or become a video game programmer. If this is your dream, go make it happen.

Not everyone wants to grow up and play video games, so in that situation, listed to Doc and do what you love. The quality of his work was dismal creating jellies and jams but when he switched to his true passion of creating evil, his work for Macho was pure genius. Do work that makes you excited to go to work every day, but like Doc did at the end of the movie, don’t sacrifice what is important to you.

ENJOY THE CUPCAKES

Embrace being a millennial and love the crazy flavored cupcakes (including ones decorated like minions) and taking selfies in line to document that you were there.

DON’T DRINK THE PURPLE LIQUID AT PARTIES

Simply put, be weary of the strange colored liquids served at parties. Drinking the purple liquid could put you in an unfortunate situation and turn you into a crazy, purple beast. After watching the minions transform, this is not a situation I would want to be in.

PICK YOUR TATTOO WITH CARE

Is your ideal tattoo is a giant Mexican flag on your chest? If it is, be on Team Macho and ignore this piece of advice.  If red, white, and green are not your colors – choose your ink with care. Pick something meaningful that you could imagine having on your skin later on in life.

YOU ARE NEVER TOO OLD TO LOVE A CARTOON MOVIE

Never lose your love of life and ability to be excited about cartoon movies like you were as a little kid. Despicable Me Two had some great life lessons in it and even college students can love the movie. At a recent Chegg for Good event, two of my fellow interns and I geeked out about the movie so much that we designed and painted a Despicable Me themed playhouse for Habitat for Humanity.

Inspiration can come from anywhere so don’t miss out on cartoon movies and embrace your inner kid.