Feel free to share any life experiences or anecdotes.
“Only break one law at a time.” None of us are perfect; That will help keep you out of life-changing trouble.
This is the most pragmatic advice I’ve read that I think might actually be heeded by a young adult.
Start exercising regularly and eating correctly now.
Practise good dental hygiene.
Especially important if you have long canines and an allergy to sunlight, right Buffy?
brush, floss, tongue scrape, mouthwash.
Drink more water.
Get therapy if you feel there’s even a remote possibility you could benefit from it, especially if you can check anything off the adverse child experience list. The way trauma impacts you and your relationships with everyone else, and even your body, is hard to understand when it’s normal to you.
How did you address your trauma? What methods did you find worked?
Therapy and medication has put me in the best state I’ve been in for basically my entire life. I’m not “cured” or anything, but between the meds and processing a lot of shit in therapy I’m at least better able to cope and interrupt my own negative spirals much more easily.
I’d been doing all the self soothing, meditation, etc techniques that people recommend for decades, and it was really only after dealing with underlying issues in therapy and getting on meds that those things actually started working for me.
I was kind of mad when I realized that because for so many years I thought I just needed to git gud, but it turns out most people can’t hype themselves out of the lingering effects of childhood trauma! Who could have foreseen this 🥴
Worry more about your job than your grades. Create a stable source of income, your degree can wait especially if it’s not a traditionally stable profession (medicine, accountant, lawyer, etc).
Exercise and maintain your strength and flexibility. This is super important, more so than the job. Staying healthy early on will save you a lot of money in doctors appointments by the time you hit your late 20s.
Young guys, invest in a good bed. Back pain sucks when you get older, so taking care of your spine early is important. Women are also much more likely to sleep with a guy that has a comfortable and inviting bed.
You’re in your bed for around a third of your life. You deserve a good one :)
— Invest at least 10% of your income into the S&P or Large Growth fund – Roth IRA or 401k if you’re still in a low tax bracket (12% here in the states). Raise the contribution percentage as you raise your income. It may not seem like a lot now but 40+ years of compounding interest goes a long way.
— A gambler on a good day will just about break even. The quickest way to do that is simply not to play. Remember when the game is rigged against you, you don’t have to play. The house always wins.
That said, play your own game. If you look at someone else’s and try to play like them you’ll mess up your own. Play your own game in life.
Keep your share of rent between 1/4 and 1/3 of your income, set up passive savings contributions of at least 10% and use a high yield savings account to stave off inflation until you both have 3 months living expenses and understand why the best investment strategies are boring
If you’re in university, your desired career and its requirements should determine your major, , not the other way around
I graduated with a bachelor’s degree only to realize my career was a dead end because only in my senior year was I informed there’s such thing as a “mental health license” for which I was disqualified due to low grades in a non-related class the year prior. Eventually I learned how well blue collar jobs pay (with a lot of job security at that) and got back on my feet working in logistics but I’ll never see the 50x return on investments by retirement because “why learn about finances when you can barely pay rent”
It all seems very obvious in hindsight
Stop drinking, you’ll save so much money and get ripped with barely any effort 💪💪
Or at least don’t waste it all drinking… I spent so much of my early 20s drinking and playing video games with my friends. While I made some great memories, it was excessive and I could have done a lot more with my time.
Don’t go to college. Run away to a country that doesn’t have a US military base and live a simple, happy, peaceful life.
Why?
No one has life figured out. Everyone has the same insecurities, fears, and doubts. Everyone is pretending to know what they’re doing at least part of the time.
Find a skill based hobby that you love and practice it every week. Stuff like a sport, musical instrument, art, etc. The hobby itself will be rewarding but there is no substitute for having decades of experience under your belt for these kind of activities.
Also, don’t have children.
I have two that I always say:
Take care of your teeth. They’re the only set you get. Also they don’t tell you this when you’re young, but all dental care is either preventative or reactionary. They can’t actually “fix” problems. If you have a cavity, that starts you down a road that ends with a crown or implant. Use any dental insurance you have religiously, pay for a good toothbrush (Oral-B or SoniCare), learn to floss properly and do it all every single day.
Second, save now as much as you are able. If you can adhere to it, look into the 50-30-20 rule. One thing it took me too long to learn is, given an otherwise living income, you won’t miss money you don’t see. When savings is automatically deposited from your paycheck, it’s out of sight and mind.
Lastly, just be yourself, and be a good person to those around you.
Good toothbrush advice (but don’t floss with a string, use those small brushes instead, doesn’t budge the teeth if you have to force the string through).
But for spending? If you have loads of wealth, then why not, but I blew about all my cash I had when I was young, going on trips, partying, eating with people, buying hobby things, checking stuff out…
I don’t regret that a second. I even think most old people would think it priceless just to go back in time and fool around a week as a 20 year old, but it’s too late now for them.
So live right now is my recommendation I guess, without doing too stupid things obviously.
Cheers.
What do you mean by not budging the teeth while flossing? Some of my teeth are pretty tight and I do use force to get the string floss to break through, is that bad?
Thats what my dentist says yes, I use something like this (but longer and with an angle):
Not saying to not have fun while you’re young. By all means, go for it. Just pointing out that a small amount of savings when you’re young pays off much more over time. If you wait, you’ll spend your later years catching up!
Well I sure can put away way more money today than when I was young. Depends I guess 🤷
Be yourself, even if it means the people in your life currently will hate you. You’ll find people who love the real you and you’ll be much happier even if it ends up making your life harder.
(this doesn’t apply if your real self is a dick, work on that)
I spent my 20s pretending to be the person the people in my life wanted me to be and it was miserable, I’m unapologetically myself in my 30s even if I’m still figuring out who that is. Its so much better and I wish I did it a decade ago.
