You learn a lot of lessons in life. After all, you live and you learn. But it’s no secret, most of us would jump at the opportunity to go back in time and advise ourselves of everything we know now. Too bad the perfect time machine doesn’t exist. Fortunately, it’s never too late to apply the lessons you’ve learned moving forward. But, more importantly, you have the chance to share your experiences to help better those up and coming behind you.
Being in the top 1%, people have this preconceived notion that we’re greedy, selfish, and enjoy seeing others struggle. That couldn’t be further from the truth. As I always say, wealth creation isn’t about money. It’s about the empowerment of people. One way I like to empower others is by sharing the life lessons I’ve learned, so they won’t have to make the same mistakes. I was blessed to be able to beat the odds to get to where I am today, so sharing the lessons I’ve learned is sort of my way of paying it forward.
Check out these simple life lessons that we all wish we knew in our early 20’s and 30’s.
No-Risk, No Reward
Failing to take calculated risks when you are in your teens and ’20s is a big mistake. This is the time to live young, wild, and free. When you see an opportunity, go for it (strategically, of course). Typically, by the time you are in your 30s you are more likely to have commitments that make it important you think through risk a little more. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take calculated risks in your 30s. It merely means that it gradually becomes harder to take bigger risks in some cases
Follow Success Instead of Avoiding Failure
Most of us are taught early on to learn from other people’s mistakes which is a great place to start. But, making mistakes is inevitable, so it’s unrealistic to expect that you’ll go through life and never make a mistake, even if you learn from the mistakes of those around you. Mistakes should be embraced as a tool to make you better. The more profitable advice would be to learn from other people’s successes. Figure out what people did right and use that as your roadmap. You should seek the answers to questions like, what decisions led them to be successful? How did they overcome the obstacles that they faced?
Learn to Invest at an Earlier Age
If you want to generate real wealth, you have to invest and the earlier you start, the better results you will see. It is also better to invest in both yourself (entrepreneurship and business) and financial investments (stocks and crypto) from an early age. It is all compounds. Compounded financial returns + compounded knowledge gained through experience = ultimate success.
Health is Wealth
Not looking after your health in your 20s, when you don’t seem to need to, is a big mistake. What’s the point of accumulating wealth and building a comfortable lifestyle if you won’t be around to enjoy it. Take care of yourself now as if your life is dependent on it…because it is dependent on it! You don’t want to end up sick and feeble simply because you didn’t develop healthy habits early enough. You’re setting the foundation of your life in your 20’s and 30’s, your health needs to be a priority.
You’re in Charge of You: Don’t be the one to give in to societal pressures. You have to decide what’s best for your life and negotiate your way to wealth. So many people fall into career paths due to pressure from society and parents. This just isn’t sensible. Making decisions on whether to buy or rent based on societal pressure also doesn’t make sense. The same thing is true of marriage and partners. The list goes on and on. Many people feel pressured by society to take certain paths, but the fact remains, no one will know what’s best for you because that’s up for you to decide.
