It’s not my birthday and I’m far from 30 years old. Therefore I can’t exactly write a ’30 things I’ve learned at 30 years old’ post.

The facts are I didn’t know shit until I was in my 30s to begin with so that would have been a pretty sad article.

Anyways with that, I wanted to share 30 lessons I learned after turning 30.

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30 Lessons Learned After Turning 30

1. Don’t drink too much — If I only had the time and money I wasted being out with friends in my 20s. Not to mention hangovers hurt when you get older.
2. Rest and relaxation — I used to work until I was so exhausted I would get sick to my stomach. Now that I’m older I’ve learned that the work will be there and suffering from fatigue isn’t worth it.
3. Try not to lose your cool — Having an emotional response to a stressful situation is a recipe for disaster. It’s best to take a deep breath and come up with a logical response instead of getting pissed and blowing up.
4. See the world as it is — I’m not saying that I’m cynical however I have learned that fantasies are for the movies. When you take a step back and see the world for what it is, things become much more clear. Designing your life with real achievable goals is where it’s at.
5. Choose who you spend time with wisely — Your mom was right. You are who you hang out with. There are only two types of people in this world. Those who lift you up and those who drag you down.
6. Time is our most valuable resource — Money, intelligence, and hard work. Sure they’re important but time tops them all. Learn how to manage time because it’s the most valuable and finite resource we have.
7. Don’t worry about the little things — Whenever some little annoying problem comes up in life ask yourself one question. Is this going to matter in 10 years? The answer is almost always no, so move on.
8. Get some sleep — The benefits of a good night’s sleep are far beyond general health. Let your body do the talking on this one. Get as much sleep as you need every night.
9. Alone time is a priority — Spending time alone is crucial for coming up with new ideas and listening to your inner self. Alone time will also make you more self-sufficient, reduce depression, and help recharge your batteries. Try to block out a few hours a week for alone time.
10. Be adaptable — Being set in your ways is supposed to be an old-people thing but I’ve become more flexible as I’ve gotten older. Adapting to your environment and finding ways to deal with change takes a lot of stress off.
11. Love your significant other — There are more than 7.63 billion people on this planet. Your significant other chose you out of all of these people. Yes you, with the bad attitude, bad breath, and antisocial tendencies. Your spouse puts up with a lot. I’ve learned to love mine more and more each day.
12. Less is more — Minimalism is truly a great lifestyle if you’re into it. Owning and consuming less stuff is pure freedom. Less to buy, less to take care of, less to organize, and so on. When you really get down to what is essential in life you realize what’s truly important. Things aren’t important. See Minimalism: Why Less Is More
13. Find a sustainable pace — I used to be busy seven days a week. I worked long hours, sometimes all night, leaving little time for much else. For weeks on end, I would be on the go. Then I would crash, be burned out, and be worthless hating everything about my job and life. It took me a long time but I finally learned that slow and steady does win the race. Finding a steady pace while maintaining a growth mindset is the key to long-term success.
14. Let things go — There are some people you just can’t please. Some people just don’t like you. There are a lot of things that you just can’t control. You are wasting valuable time and energy trying to change these things. Get over it, move on, and let it go. A whole lot of happiness comes from the freedom of not giving a crap.
15. Say less to be heard — Listen before you speak. Keep your words few and people will listen more carefully. Speak clearly and concisely if you truly want people to hear what you’re telling them.
16. Be healthy — Pay attention to your health. Eat good foods and keep tabs on your mental well-being. Without good health, it is impossible to keep your quality of life optimal. The habits you have as a younger person can make a difference later in life. You should always be your number one priority.
17. Don’t follow the crowd — They’re probably going the wrong way anyway. Go your own way and do what’s right for you regardless of outside opinion.
18. Know your limitations — Remember Clint Eastwood in the movie Magnum Force. “A man’s got to know his limitations” Well Dirty Harry was right, you can’t do it all. Stick to what you’re good at and let someone else do the rest.
19. Being cheap can get expensive — Ever heard the term stepping over dollars to pick up a dime? Buying low-quality items, hiring the less qualified employee, and the, ‘I’ll just fix it myself attitude.’ This usually ends up costing more money in the long run. Some things you just shouldn’t skimp on. Like hiring the cheapest neurosurgeon. It’s probably a bad idea. Buy quality items that you know will last. Pay the best people to work for you. Hire an expert if you don’t know what you’re doing. I’ve learned this one the hard way too many times.
20. Say no most of the time — Learn The Life-Changing Power Of Saying No. When we give someone a no for an answer we free up time to do the things that are important. The old adage is true, for every no you give you’re saying yes to something else. Too often the word yes is like the default answer that our brain reverts to when someone asks us to do something. The problem is saying yes just to please someone is robbing yourself of your own time. Set guilt aside and change your default answer to no. Take careful consideration when saying yes and committing to something. People will respect you for it.
21. Build your brain muscle — Keep reading, keep learning, and always continue expanding your knowledge. Invest in yourself as much as possible. As we get older our real muscles get tired so keep your mind sharp and you will have value.
22. Change — If you want things to change then you’re going to have to take action. Waiting around for something to happen isn’t going to work. Whining and complaining about the way things are isn’t going to work. You are going to have to take massive action if you want to change any part of your life. Take action today, even if it’s a small step, and start working towards your goal. Then do more tomorrow and things will start to snowball.
23. Stop caring what others think — I used to be afraid of failure. I wasn’t afraid of the failure itself but of what others would think about the failure. Because I was worried about what others thought I would purposely avoid trying new things for fear I would fail. What I have realized is that when you stop caring about what others think you start to make progress. When you stop caring what others think you take the power away from those people and give it to yourself. Who cares what people think? At the end of the day, you only have to look at yourself in the mirror.
24. Markets always win — It doesn’t matter if it’s the job market, stock market, or the market your business is in. The market will prevail. You can open the best restaurant in a fifty-mile radius with no competition in site but if it’s in the middle of a desert it won’t do well. I spent a large portion of my career trying to run successful businesses in bad markets and the markets won. You can be the most qualified blacksmith or the best telephone booth repairman in the world but you’re probably going to have a tough time in the job market.
25. Hard work isn’t everything — My parents lied to me. They said if you just work hard you will be successful. What a bunch of crap! If this were true every construction worker out there would be a millionaire. Hard work is important but it takes more than that. You need to work smart. Be the best in your field. Pay attention to the market you’re in and keep a growth/abundance mindset. With a little luck, and all of the above you will have what it takes to be successful.
26. Most battles aren’t worth fighting — Pick your battles carefully. Battles take time and energy. Battles are stressful. If the outcome of winning a battle you choose to fight isn’t going to matter in 10 years or doesn’t fit your future life design move on.
27. You can’t rely on others — Sure we rely on friends, family, and coworkers to do things for us but we should always be prepared to rely upon ourselves. Things come up and people get busy. People let us down. People prioritize themselves. If you’re prepared to have to do something on your own you won’t be disappointed.
28. Debt is enslavement — Avoid it as much as possible.
29. People have short memories — Remember that time you went out of your way for a friend or stayed late to help a coworker? Good for you because they don’t. Doing nice things for people is awesome but never expect them to return the favor. They have already forgotten and you’re on the path to disappointment if you think otherwise. Sometimes you do a favor for someone and human nature has caused them to forget. Other times it was just an undeserving person. It doesn’t matter. Just don’t expect too much from people and you will be happier.
30. Listen to your gut — This is the hardest lesson I’ve had to learn so I saved it for last. Every single bad decision I have ever made could have been avoided. You guessed it. I didn’t listen to my gut. I’ve hired the wrong people, got into projects that I shouldn’t have, and on and on. Taking the time to make the right decisions and listening to your inner voice will always put you on the right path. Most of the time when I was making a bad decision my inner voice was screaming but I wasn’t listening. No more ignoring it. Your inner voice is your personal adviser.

Bonus Lesson

Always be yourself no matter what. My wife has this issue with me being an introvert. She finds it fun to put me in social situations when I’d rather be doing almost anything else. I used to protest when we had to be around humans but then I started to adapt. I started to pretend I was more of an extrovert to make socializing easier.

The only problem was, people got used to it. They wanted to engage with me even more. This, of course, made me miserable. I created my own little prison, bunking with my alter outgoing self and I had to get out. Finally, I listened to my inner voice. I said no more and gave up the act.

Being our true selves and not caring what others think is what we should all strive to do. It’s a lot less baggage to carry.

Thanks for reading 30 Lessons Learned After Turning 30. I hope you enjoyed this post.

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