37 Things Worth Remembering
It’s been another year and while nothing has changed, everything has changed. Continuing with my birthday tradition, I want to share 37 things worth remembering.
No one will set your boundaries for you. You have to own it, maintain it, and assert it.
Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today—an old adage that I thought meant do everything immediately. I was wrong. The key word is “can”—listen to your mind and your body and do what you can.
If you have energy today, harness it and use it. If you don’t have energy, accept it, and listen to what your body tells you.
Every time you say “yes” to something, you inadvertently say “no” to something else. Be aware of this when making decisions.
The meritocracy is dead. Hard work is not a guarantee that it will pay off, pay up, or pay out.
Never stop being vulnerable with people. You never know when you’ll find an important person.
Friends can be like seasons: they come and go in cycles, ebbing and flowing like tides. Let them be like this. You may be a season in their life.
Don’t do something because everyone is doing it or because someone else expects you to do it. Either do it because you want to, or because it’s the right thing to do.
Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it makes things a hell of a lot easier to manage. There’s nothing wrong with doing something for the money.
There’s nothing wrong with doing something because it brings you joy. You don’t have to turn hobbies into hustles.
Books are the cheapest form of education you can get.
All success is a lagging indicator, and the same is true for failures. If you want to figure how why you failed or succeeded, look at the patterns that led up to it.
You don’t have to care about everything, especially not equally.
You are not a mind reader. There’s nothing wrong with asking people to clarify, explain, or help you.
As you get older, pet peeves become rage triggers.
Daylight Savings Time is pointless - can we pick a time and keep it year-round? (See #15)
If you want to know something, it’s up to you to learn it. If you don’t have the motivation to learn it, ask yourself if you’re okay with not knowing?
Better to say “I don’t know,” or “I don’t have an opinion,” or “I need more information before forming an opinion,” than to stick your foot in your mouth.
Cruelty is easy. Kindness is easy. What matters is how you train yourself to respond.
Get a library card. Even if you never use it, it boosts the library and gives them more to work with for your community.
Don’t confuse injustice with inconvenience, especially if you’re coming from a place of privilege.
The more you learn, the less you know.
Use all your paid vacation time. You don’t have to go anywhere, but you definitely need to use it all.
If you have the means, go somewhere you’ve always wanted to go.
Spot edge cases and one-offs and note them as such. Don’t create a process or plan your life around something that has a slim-to-none chance of occurring.
There’s nothing wrong with a dash of pretentiousness in your life.
Find something you LOVE to splurge on and use that to help motivate you.
Time is truly a finite resource. Are you spending it the way you want?
Words matter. It takes effort to communicate and effort to convey your thoughts, feelings, and meanings. Don’t burden others with trying to figure out what you mean. Clear is kind.
Yes, you only live once. Set yourself up for happiness and independence by taking care of your body and mind while you’re young so you have the discipline and years of advantage when you get older.
Americans over-eat too frequently. Intermittent fasting works wonders while letting you enjoy the foods you love.
Just because someone offers advice or feedback doesn’t mean you have to listen, absorb, or act on it.
It’s okay to refuse free stuff.
Find a friend from a different generation. You’ll be utterly delighted.
Things that seem hard are rarely hard, but they often require more focus and patience than you’re willing to give.
Life is a contradiction. Try and enjoy it. :)
Growing with someone is one of the most rewarding experiences you can have. I hope you get to experience it in your life.
Thanks for being here for another year! Cheers to health, wealth, and wisdom!