The most important life lessons I learned in my 20’s

I’ve always had the mindset that you should never stop learning. Life is a continuous learning experience and if you’re open to it, each day can teach you a new lesson. 

Apart from everyday lessons, every now and then something bigger just clicks. Call it an epiphany. You realise something great and once you start implementing it, the world just starts working better for you.

The life lessons which have had the biggest impact on me and helped me navigate through my twenties the most, are the following:

The future is now

Somewhere in my mid-twenties, I realised that the present day, right here right now, is actually the future that I thought about when I was younger. 

We tend to set things aside for later in life. One day I want to do this… one day I want to try that… but at some point, you have to realise that one day will always remain in the future unless you consciously decide to do it now – in the present. 

To make future dreams a reality you have to act now, otherwise, they will always just stay future dreams and you will never catch up with them.

Failure is not final, it’s part of the process

Fear of failure is probably one of the biggest obstacles to overcome. People are scared to make mistakes. We tend to think failure is the finale outcome and if we don’t get something right the first time, we can’t do it.

The thing is, failure only exists when you quit. When you keep on trying and eventually get something right, that failure was just a step in the process.

The only way to learn something is to keep on trying and learning from what is not working. Another one of the important life lessons is that a mistake is not a negative thing. It’s just part of the process to get to the right outcome. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you’re done when you’re actually just a bit stuck in the messy middle of your journey.

To be really good at something takes A LOT  more time and effort than you think

They say it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill. They are not wrong. This is one of the most important life lessons to learn from an early age.

It’s a common pitfall to greatly underestimate the time and effort needed to put in to achieve the results we want. Most people just see the tip of the ice-berg and have no idea of the mountain of work built up underneath it. We are so used to seeing other people only at the time they’ve already achieved success and vastly misjudge the amount of time and effort they put into achieving their results.

What we don’t realise, is that the time and effort needed is much, much more than we could ever have fathomed before starting. 

We think we work hard and then we’re disappointed by the lack of results. We’re usually unaware that we have to put in ten, or even a hundred times more effort. It’s not that you are bad at something or a slow learner, it’s just that goals take a long time to materialise. DON’T BE FOOLED TO THINK ANY OTHER WAY.

Be positive

Okay, I’ve always been pretty positive. I don’t know how much of it is inborn and how much is a choice, but I’ve been making the conscious decision to see things in a positive manner since as long as I can remember. It has helped me tremendously throughout life.

Life can be hard, boring, traumatic and downright unfair sometimes. If we choose to go look for the good in whatever is thrown our way and learn from it, it’s much easier to find a silver lining. 

When you’re positive you feel good, when you feel good, life’s good. 

If you’re not positive by nature, then see it as a skill that you can acquire and go find a way to learn it. It’s worth it.

Nobody’s coming to save you from yourself or your life

You can spend a lot of time waiting for a knight in shining armour to come and save you or guide you to a better life, or you can spend that time to become that dashing knight yourself.

If no one is giving you the advice you need, then it’s up to you to go find the advice yourself. If no one is coming to motivate you, or help you, or tell you that you’re pretty and special, you will have to do those things yourself and essentially become the person you want to meet. 

Life is what it is. You can allow it to be hard, or you can try to make it easier for yourself. The trick is to keep learning and be aware of the lessons thrown at you.

The twenties can be rough. Be sure to make the most of the important life lessons thrown your way and remember to never stop learning, to catch up with the future, to not give up when you think you’ve failed, to try even harder than you ever thought possible, to stay positive and to be your own knight in shining armour. You’ll be just fine.

Do you have any thoughts you would like to contribute to our blog? Go to the Write for Us section to learn more!