Hello everyone!
I recently turned 25 years old, and I had the idea to collect advice from my peers and put it into a blog post. I posted a survey with the question: "What do you wish you could have told yourself when you were 25?" This blog post is a select 25 responses to that question. All answers to the survey were copied/pasted verbatim. All responses have been identified by the name/age filled out in the survey.
Enjoy!
"Everything will work out. Stop stressing over everything!" - Anonymous, age 43.
"1) Find a mentor and spend as much time with them as you can.
2) Be present. The more present you are, the more relevant you become.
3) Your aversion to risk will increase as you age (mostly because the stakes are higher as you take on more responsibility). So embrace the bravery that stems from your ignorance and give your crazy ideas a chance to become real.
4) Conventional wisdom says that owning a dog is great practice for having kids. My experience was exactly the opposite. Having a baby made me much more prepared to own the responsibility of caring for a dog." - Kristina, 37.
"You are enough." - Nana, 57.
"Start putting money into a 529 immediately." - F3 "King of Beers".
"Surround yourself with friends/family and work to cultivate more/deeper relationships constantly. Life isn’t as much about what you do as it is who you do it with." - Jason Kilgro, 31.
"Take the time to enjoy all the little things in life." - Debb, 58.
"Invest in marriage counseling early. Not because you're having problems, but because it can help mitigate issues with your spouse before they become bigger issues. There is no shame in that either... Same reason you do preventative maintenance on your car! Pre-marriage counseling is great and necessary, but that's not usually when you want the assistance... It's usually after you've had some time in the seat and are experiencing the things people told you you would experience... That's when the help will mean the most to you... Not before you ever experience the issue. Back to the car thing... An oil change before you drive your new car off the lot isn't as effective as one when you've hit 5k miles... And better to get one at 5k than at 50k when you've thrown a rod and need a new engine!" - F3 "Cannibal", 33.
"...that was last year. I don't know. Hide $10 in your winter coat so present me will have 10 more dollars." - Crazy, 26.
"Any time someone enters the room, make them feel welcome and let them know you're glad to see them. You don't know what is going on in their life, and there should be no reason why you shouldn't be always making people happy. If I had the ability to do it, you should, too." - Beaujolais, 15. (RIP)
"Don't take yourself so seriously. You're doing just fine. Everything always sorts itself out, one way or another." - Anonymous, 49.
"Your car insurance only goes down if you don’t get in a wreck." - Danna, 27.
"I wish I could have told myself that all the infertility doctor visits, procedures, and medications would be the best use of my time and energy. I went through that time wishing for great results and worrying about never being able to have children. It was such a roller coaster of emotions to be totally devastated month after month - for five years! People, especially family, would hint that it was time to begin having a family, without realizing we were working diligently to do just that, but were failing miserably through no fault of our own. We didn’t tell people we we were struggling, almost because it felt like it would jinx our chances at success. Then, when we finally got the test back as positive, there were complications and mandatory bed rest almost immediately. We were so afraid that we were going to lose the baby that we had tried to have for 5 years. Fast forward 33 years, and here we are. I couldn’t be any prouder or more head-over-heels for my two boys! I missed the young, carefree days that many 25 year-olds get to experience. I was so focused on the future that I didn’t pay much attention to the everyday joys, I guess. My advice? Enjoy each day to the fullest while still setting yourself up for the future you dream of. That’s what I wished I had told myself and experienced at age 25." - Mom, 58
"There is still no rush to get where you want to be. It will come in Gods time." - Mr. E, 27
"Be your own person. Don’t worry about what others think or what others want." - Downtown Bill Skin, 52.
"A wise old man once told me something along the lines of “Monday is just another day. If you live to 91 and never enjoy Mondays, you won’t enjoy a total of 13 years of your life.” Oh wait...that wise old man was you! Congrats on being born 3 months before me. I look forward to enjoying many more Mondays with you and your infinite wisdom in my life." - Sarahlicious, 24.75.
"Be happy. The typical 'American Dream' doesn't apply to everyone. You don't need to follow the system. Find your own path. Travel, explore, experience while you're young and then choose your way." - Anonymous, 200.
"If I’m still alive at 25, please put me out of my misery. Okay I filled out the survey, happy? Go clean my litter-box." - Millie the Cat, 2.
"Travel more!" - Jess, 25.
"Oh my! At 25 I was in nursing school, newly married, and still had that feeling like if a weekend went by without some kind of social interaction (ie:party), that it was a wasted weekend and I was shortchanged. A few more years, and I had a career and a child etc and Boy! was all that stuff not important anymore. So I guess if I had to say something about 25 years of age, it would be, maybe.....You think you are grown and smart, and you probably do things that are compatible with grown and smart, but YOU AREN'T! Real close, but probably not there yet. But enjoy that time, it is when you SHOULD still be allowed to make mistakes that you know are mistakes. "last vestiges of childhood". And have enough fun that when it is time to put silly things aside, you can do so with an inner grin and some naughty memories. And later, you can counsel future 25 year-olds with a degree of knowledge not available to those who never were naughty!" - Anonymous, way past 25.
"Take good care of yourself. Eat healthy and exercise more. Say no more often. You’re worth it. You’re enough. You deserve it!" - Anonymous, 41.
"Don't be afraid to fail." - Uncle Joe, 59.
"Don't work more than you play. Life only happens once, spend it wisely." - Kim Stowe, 43.
"Change is hard- for everyone. It’s important to acknowledge that in your work life, private life, church life, family life. Take care of your teeth, and the rest of your health, too. Glorify God and enjoy Him (and all the stages of your life) forever! Relationships are important- with God, loved ones, and the rest of the family." - Aunt Diane, 58.
"Save $ for retirement. Living in the moment, it never occurred to me that I would actually live that long. (40ish years was forever away.)" - Cin, 68.
"People around you know a lot, find out a way to collect important advice from them, and then follow it." - Jeremy, 25.
Special thanks to Robbie and Chelsie Denson for throwing me the best birthday party ever!
God bless!