What I'd Tell My Teenage Self
10 lessons on life, money & careers
Looking back on my life I’ve always wondered what I would have told my teenage self if I had the chance. What would I have changed? What would I have done differently?
There were some things that I was fortunate to know early in life. Then there were other things that I didn’t figure out until later.
Here are ten things that I would tell my teenage self about life, money and careers.
Money Is a Tool, It’s Not Everything. Be careful with your views and approach to money. It can consume you and your life. Far too many people make their entire life about money. Everything ties back to money. Don’t get caught in that game. It’s miserable.
Your life is spent accumulating money and when you die it’s all left behind. You can’t take it with you. So don’t hoard it your whole life. When you leave it behind you miss out on those experiences with the people you leave it to. Spend and enjoy it with others while you still can.
Time Flies. Schedule and make the best use of your time. Time flies and it waits for nobody. You need to learn to say no at times. Even if it isn’t the popular decision or if it upsets someone. Make time for what matters to you.
Social media is a time suck. Arguing is a time suck. Comparing yourself to others is a time suck. Eliminate the negative time wasting, uneducating and unproductive uses of your time.
How are you using your time? What is your priority? Money can always be made again. Time cannot. You can’t buy back more time. It stands still for no one. It’s life’s most precious commodity.
You Control the Ever-Moving Goalpost. No matter how much you achieve, more always exists. We chase more money, more fame and more power. You’ll always be chasing something. We look around and compare ourselves to our friends, neighbors, co-workers and even people we don’t know. The constant pursuit of more never slows down. Everything passes you by with your constant thirst for more. The finish line doesn’t exist. What is enough? When does happiness and contentment set in?
The truth is someone will always have more money, more followers and more fame than you. Choose to play your own game, then you can slow or stop your ever-moving goalpost and decide for yourself what success is, what is enough and what is wealth. It’s all about your perspective.
Aim Towards a Career, Not a Job. Strive to have a career that has a purpose to you. Do something that fulfills you and that you enjoy doing. It doesn’t matter what other people think.
Working at a job you don’t like is miserable. Working in a career you love can give purpose and meaning to your life. If you have a hobby or something you're very passionate about try making a career out of it. About a third of your time will be spent working. Make sure it’s something that you enjoy.
Spend time job shadowing and talking to people in careers you think you may like. Ask them questions. Having an idea of what you would like to do will save you a lot of wasted time and money.
Don’t Be Afraid of Taking Some Risks. Ask yourself, what’s the worst that can happen? Decide to scratch that itch. Avoid the what-if I had done that feeling. Remember if you don’t shoot, you don’t score. Shooters shoot. So take the shot.
It’s ok to wait, but don’t wait too long or you’ll never do it. If something were easy, everyone would be doing it.
School Doesn’t Teach You Everything. An education is important and required to get into certain fields of work. But regardless of how much schooling you have, your learning will come through doing and experiencing the actual work.
If you go to college, have an idea what you’re pursuing. Don’t just go to college to go to college.
Never stop reading. If you want to improve at something, find a way. Don’t make excuses. Nobody is going to do it for you. Research, read and teach yourself to be great.
Don’t Wait To Invest. Investing early enables you to be financially free from relying on work and gives you the ability to retire earlier in life. The more years your money is able to compound and accumulate, the more it grows. Bear markets and steep stock market selloffs are the time to buy. Take advantage of the lower prices. Think long-term and just continue to buy every month.
Do What You Want. Live a life true to yourself, not the life others expect of you. Do what makes you happy. That also means, not being critical of others for doing what makes them happy. They’re taking their shot, so should you.
Have purpose. What are you working for and towards? Keep the fire burning. Chase goals to get better everyday. Complaining will get you nowhere. Do something about it. Get better, work harder.
Life Isn’t Easy. Welcome to the real world! Things are always changing and challenges will always be lurking. Never get too high or too low. Take the good with the bad. Worry less and remember, this too shall pass.
Be nice to everyone. Don’t be a prick. It gets you nowhere. Say thank you. Kindness matters. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Learn and take advice from others. This is how you find great mentors.
Workout consistently and create healthy routines. Take care of your mind and body.
Create Memories, Not Regrets. Starting a family will provide greater joy than any amount of money or fame. Nothing will be more rewarding in your life.
Are you working every waking hour to save money to do things when you’re retired? Why wouldn’t you do things now? Happiness is the key. Live now and not for later. Enjoy the experiences along the way. It’s how lifelong memories are made.
How will you look back upon your life? Build yourself a great story.
I’ve written posts on some of these subjects in the past. If you’d like to read them they’re linked below.
The Coffee Table ☕
Nick Maggiulli had an insightful post entitled, Should You Die With Zero? In it he expands off the “die with zero” theory from Bill Perkins’s book. He even serves up some data on how much money is passed on by age group upon death.
Jack Raines also did a nice post on the premise of the book by Bill Perkins entitled, Can’t Take It with You. He shares his life story about experiences and spending money versus taking it with you.
I have Bill Perkins’s book, Die with Zero on my bookshelf. After reading these two posts regarding this book, now I have to read it. It’s next up on my list.
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