10 Things to Know About Life Before You Turn 30
It is easy to wake up one morning and look in the mirror only to discover strands of grey hair on your head, beard, moustache, or even in all three places. There is always the first time you are going to notice that. And for many people, it can come as a mega jolt, especially people who have achieved little or nothing.
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Nowadays, time flies like the F-22. And unless you are a smart individual with big dreams, you won’t notice until it’s too late. Just think of it. How you try to accomplish a fixed pile of tasks within 24 hours, then realize you aren’t even halfway through when dusk falls. I have been through such scenario uncountable times, and you likely have too. So in this article, we discuss 10 things you need to know before you are thirty. Hopefully, you already know most or even all of these things and are applying it in your life.
Table of Contents
10 Things to Know About Life Before You Turn 30
1. Discover Your Purpose
What exactly do you want to achieve in this life? Why do you want to make such achievements? How do you intend to achieve your goals? Where do you want to be in the next 5, 10, or 15 years? How do you want to touch people’s lives and make society better?
All these questions are important to anyone who has a clearly defined goal. Most people today think they have a goal, not knowing that all they have done choose a career based on some general belief about its financial prospects. It is common to find secondary school students who say they want to become medical doctors, pharmacists, nurses, etc. just because they believe that is the quickest way to get a job. The result is that most students end up in a career they are not passionate about. And without passion for that field, you can never become a master—not the educational master, but a natural guru. And this means you can never exploit your potential to the maximum without switching fields.
Our education system today is a big mess. It contributes more to destroying talent than grooming it. You are forced by our education system to spend 6 years in primary school, six years in secondary school, and 4 years in university. Some gifted fast learners can cover the whole secondary school syllabus in 3 years instead of six, and some university students can cover their entire course syllabus in two years or less.
Similarly, some slow but talented learners may need up to eight years to cover the entire secondary school syllabus, and maybe six years to master their courses at the university. In the first case, the fast-learning student is delayed, leading to a waste of time. In the second instance, the slow but talented learner is forced to complete the academic task too soon, and this hinders their understanding of the curriculum. These two unfavorable conditions are made possible by our defunct education system, and this problem is global.
In many cases, universities offer students different course than what they applied for. It can be courses that these students do poorly in, like mathematics. How on earth would such a student become a good mathematician when he has no passion for it?
If you don’t have a goal and a strong determination to achieve that goal, our institutions are more likely to destroy than improve your abilities. Whatever you studied in school, you can still achieve your dream goal; the only disadvantage is that misplacement of priorities results in a big waste of time. Some people have to do a degree twice because they didn’t like the first course they studied. What a waste of time! It is part of the reason we have so many jobless graduates around.
2. Know How to Develop Your Personality
Watch your Actions
Your life is a house. Your daily actions are the bricks that build that house. If the bricks are cracked, weak, or formless, that’s the type of life you will have. And if they are strong with sharp and even edges, your life will reflect the same. You need to watch your actions carefully and be responsible. Any action that doesn’t have a clear advantage should be avoided. Most actions that cannot help you in the short or long run often have adverse effects.
Playing a computer game becomes an advantage if you gain something from it, likethe ability to ease tension after a busy day or earn money for reviewing or competing in games. But when you spend too much time playing video games just for the hell of it, then it becomes a problem. The same goes for watching movies, chatting on social media—you name them. The key is: don’t just go through a single day without taking your progress and setbacks into account.
Cultivate a Positive Habit
Habits are very important. They are keys to success and failure. Your good habits enable you to do good things with little effort. And your bad habits make you do bad things before you even realize what you’ve done. For example, you may be talkative. It is well known that talkative people are always liars. You can’t talk too much without telling lies, because then you’ll run out of things to say. The consequences of being a liar are that you’ll lose people’s trust and respect. No one will take you seriously, even when you speak the truth. The result is that you’ll find it difficult to work with people. And without working with people, you are unlikely to succeed in whatever you do.
Be Selective with the Books You Read
There is no denying that books have a direct effect on us. This is because they deal directly with the intellect (aka the mind). We have a natural tendency to believe printed words over spoken words. Maybe because they say: seeing is believing. Because printed words are seen instead of heard, we tend to believe the former more than the latter. If you read books that develop the evil in you and teach you how to use it, you are likely to start doing so.
For example, reading books that teach you how to manipulate, deceive, or spy on people. Once armed with such knowledge, the temptation to implement it on someone or a group of people may become unbearable for you. Had you kept away from such books, you wouldn’t have the knowledge, let alone be tempted to do such a thing. So if you read a particular author or similar group of authors, it is highly likely your mind will be molded after theirs.
Life is Not a Competition
Do not compare yourself with others except as a way of motivation or showing gratitude to God for the blessings he’s given you. When you compare yourself with someone else and try to do or be exactly what they are, you forget yourself. Each individual is different for a reason. We all have our separate paths. By concentrating on someone else’s path, we are very likely to miss the lessons that are meant for us alone. You can learn from someone. Your intention should be to incorporate the positive personalities and actions of your role model and even aim to be better.
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Know Who to Associate With
Your friends and the people you spend your time with have a tremendous impact on your personality. You must pick your inner circle carefully. Surround yourself with negative people and you are very likely to fail. Keep close to evil people and they will work to bring you down.
Every group has the kind of conversation they always indulge in. It could be beneficial or vain talk. Vain talk is a big time-waster and even harmful in the long run. When all you listen to is vain talk, you cannot take part effectively in intelligent conversations. Plus, society can easily judge you according to your inner circle.
On the other hand, it is advisable to associate with successful and intelligent people. Because you stand a chance of learning the good things about them that make them intelligent or successful. And they are very likely to steer you towards success by telling you their experiences and even secrets to making it.
Be Self-conscious of Your Personality and Actions
It is important to be aware of who you really are. By consciously making the effort to understand yourself better, you are more likely to address your shortcomings and improve on your positive traits. A good way to do this is to listen to people’s complaints and praises about you. If a good number of people complain about a particular attitude you have, it is highly likely to be true, no matter how hard you try to convince yourself otherwise. Public opinion is never wrong when it’s a matter of someone’s personality.
A good way to understand your strengths and weaknesses is to reflect upon your successes and failures and try to trace the reason for such successes and failures.
3. Things to Know About Life Before 30 – Learn New Things
Learn by Reading
You can learn new things that’ll help you achieve your life goals. If you have a clearly defined life goal (which you should have before 30), there are people who have achieved similar goals. Take those as role models and learn as much about their lives as you can. Take note of the personalities about them that made them successful and try to adapt such factors to your current situation. You mustn’t do exactly what they did or how they did it. Be creative where necessary. Any legal means you take to achieve your final goals is acceptable, but the quickest is always best.
Read books related to what you want to become, or simply, your passion. Learn from your contacts and peers. If you can find a mentor who is always available for advice and encouragement, then you’re in luck. Also reflect on your daily actions and what their possible results or consequences may be in the future.
Learn by Practice
Practice a lot of skills that are necessary for your field. We learn a lot from physical practice. If you have a passion for what you do, practicing always won’t be a problem for you. In fact, it’ll be a pleasure. If you find yourself considering certain tasks a real problem or great work, then you probably have no passion for it, and you should start looking for something that interests you. If you really love that thing but are overwhelmed by laziness, it is a good strategy to find others to push you and train with.
To deal with laziness, you can adopt a reward/punishment system, especially if you have to break bad habits. Rewards and punishment can bring about immediate and rapid changes in personality if you follow them strictly. Be honest with yourself and don’t claim to others that you should do what you are not. This is difficult because most of us have a driving urge to impress people, especially those whose admiration we want to win.
Be consistent with the learning process. Consistency is key to self-development and knowledge. It is the most important factor in create a truly meaningful change. Being consistent will help your body adapt faster. It makes it easy for you to learn new behavior and improve your personality. The roadblock to consistency is laziness and procrastination. Regardless of how weak or disinterested you feel about doing something important, try to just do it.
4. Learn to Use Scale of Preference
Before you turn 30, it is important to understand and incorporate the scale of preference in everything you do. We, as humans, are bombarded by too many wishes at any given time. You have work to do but you feel a compelling urge to turn on your laptop and start playing your favorite game. You always tell yourself, I will do it later. And then you end up doing it late, probably in too much a hurry. Sometimes, it may even be too late to Do it.
What you should have understood is that everything is graded by importance according to time and the situation at hand. Never use your heart’s desire to execute any task in a series of tasks you need to complete. First, identify the most important ones at the moment. Identify what you are supposed to be doing at each moment.
There is time for everything. If you have a bundle of dirty clothes to wash, then it’s not the time to play computer games. If you have a client’s job to complete, it is not the time to go flirting with your girlfriend or boyfriend. Neither should you waste time chatting on social media or with friends physically. Do not sit watching a movie when, at the back of your mind, you know that it is time to read for a test or an examination.
Most times, the wrong tasks are just too tempting to give up, but you need to develop this habit before you are 30. Leave whatever you are doing that is not right at the moment. don’t even think about it. Just do. No matter how boring or lazy you are at doing something, just stand up and start doing it. Ignore that the work is so great—like writing a 500-page novel.
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5. Things to Know About Life Before 30: Be Productive
The first step to being productive is to manage time wisely. The smart and successful know the value of time. Every minute, hour, day, etc. is an opportunity to invest in yourself and become a better person. Each time you invest time wisely, you move a step or many steps towards your final goal. Not only should you be able to manage your time wisely, but you should also plan your activities to eliminate or minimize distraction.
You can’t do everything at once. Focusing completely on the task at a time enables you to do it to the best of your ability. Plus, you won’t feel overwhelmed by tasks, and this should be good encouragement. To be productive, you also have to focus on doing things more efficiently so that you can do a lot within a short time and also have a lot more time to accomplish other things.
Overcome the fear that comes with facing a difficult task. To be successful, you need to accomplish something difficult at some point. This is why there are so few successful people. Only a few are willing to take on the challenge of becoming successful individuals. One of the major reasons for fear is that we aren’t sure we can do this well or are doubtful of the chances of success. This often stems from a lack for adequate knowledge and skill regarding what we want to accomplish. To be really productive towards achieving success, you must understand what you need for that thing. And try to acquire all the knowledge and skills that are critical to success. Such knowledge will help minimize your fear and make you more efficient.
You can also keep a to-do list. The advantage is that it reminds you of all that you need to accomplish over a particular period, and in what order you are supposed to do it. You should know all these things before you turn thirty. Also, avoid activities that can be addictive, such as taking alcohol and other intoxicants. An intoxicated person cannot concentrate on anything. Also, avoid distractions as much as possible. There are places and people who distract a lot. Keeping away from these should help you be more productive.
6. Learn to Have Control Over Your Emotions
Many people were ruined by the people they loved or were infatuated with. Relationships are meant to provide peace of mind and joy. But some or even most, don’t work out that way. If you notice that your partner is contributing significantly to your troubles, it is time to talk to him or her. If it is something you can live with that does not threaten your ability to concentrate and work efficiently towards success, then I doubt that relationship is good for you. It can be a friend, a lover or a family member. If it is someone you cannot separate from, giving them some distance is the best idea. For example, if you have a troublesome parent, you can still take care of them without being close to them.
Also, learn to control your emotions or it will destroy you. Put things like anger, fear and pride under control, no matter the situation. keep your heart’s desires in check. Don’t go lusting after that lady or guy who snobs you. They don’t deserve your love, time, or attention. Try to always bend your mind to what is most important instead of spending long hours every day thinking of that lady or guy.
7. Keep Your Body and Mind Healthy
Eat well if you have the means, and look good, especially in public. Your body is your temple, so it deserves every good treatment you can shower it with. There are people who are misers, even with themselves. They won’t spend much on good food, clothing, or shelter, despite having enough to do that. They may suffer health problems that might have been averted with good nutrition. Some don’t even like visiting the hospital when they are sick for fear of spending more. So they buy whatever medicine they can get from a small store or even hawkers, most times without proper diagnosis. As a result, diseases that are easily curable in their early stages become chronic and difficult to treat.
When your body is not well, you cannot do anything. Feeding and medical care are not the only means of taking care of yourself. You need to be selective with what you put in your mouth. Do not consume or overconsume foods that’ll later have adverse health effects, like taking too many fats, sugar and synthesized foods.
Exercise is also another way to keep fit. Most people don’t exercise regularly. Exercise helps you prevent a lot of common health problems that are killing some people, like high blood pressure and so on. Also, sleep well and give your body a rest whenever you feel like it.
8. Learn to Solve Problems on Your Own
Relying on yourself for survival is a very important method of self-discipline. If you are responsible for your welfare, you are more likely to be able to save and manage money. And you will also find it less difficult to take care of someone, like a wife. Being dependent makes you less active. It nearly strips you of any incentives to work hard and endure hardship.
A good problem-solving tool that everyone must know in today’s world is how to use the computer or at least the internet. Mastering internet research skills will help you access information that’ll make it easier for you to succeed.
9. Things to Know About Life Before 30 – Learn to Save Money
There is hardly anything you can achieve without spending money over a long period of time. Money is the hardest thing to get. Therefore, you must learn to manage it well. Do not be a reckless spender. Aim to achieve something good for everything you spend.
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10. Get Married
This is true, especially for women. You need to be married before you reach 30. It is not likely that you are up to 25 years old without anyone showing genuine interest at some point in marrying you. Maybe you were still feeling like a big girl or perhaps you are a snob who only wants to marry a rich man. Most people don’t get the wife or husband of their dreams, but they still make it in life. If you are a very patient person, you can live with anyone and be fine.
We have discussed ten things you should know before you are thirty. Hopefully, you are still below thirty. But don’t worry if you are thirty or older. You can still apply the ideas in your life and see great results. Read more from other sources about how to become the successful person that you want to be. And learn from the stories of others.
