As a 17 year old, lately I’ve been thinking a lot about my future and what I want to do and within this process I’ve had a lot of time to examine others. Lately I’ve noticed a trait in people who aren’t living their best lives all because they were constantly making choices based on fear and not love. Are you not living your best life? Are you wasting time?
People who reach their thirties or forties and are not fulfilled is because they made decisions out of fear and not love. It can be things like, getting married because you think “the time is ticking, Im 31” or “the time is ticking, got to have kids and get married” so they marry the best person they are with. Staying in a career that they hate because they are too afraid to leave something stable to do what they love. “How am I going to make money off doing what I love?”, “What is my passion?”, “Its too late to change careers”. The risk of leaving something stable to pursue what you love to do is scary, but doing that and learning ways to make money off it is always worth it. People don’t travel the world because they watch tv shows of horrible things happening around the world, and so they never experience all the good. Whether these people have noticed it or not, they’ve made choices out of fear and therefore not living their best life.
Realistically the time is always ticking whether you are 50 years old or 20 years old, so start now its never too late.
I see a lot of people in their 20’s either working the 9-5 job and constantly waiting for the weekend, or people leaving home and backpacking around the world. Now as much as I say I believe traveling can teach you so many things, you have to gain experience towards something. If you chose to go backpacking for most of you 20’s because “I don’t want the 9-5, I want to go make the most of my life” the reality is your wasting just as much time as the other person doing the 9-5 job. Neither one is making that much progress to an awesome life. Sure you may be having fun and the 9-5 person may be bored but realistically you’re both going to hit thirty and say “Crap, what now? I’m thirty, I have no proper income, I have no special skills, no proper job. I didn’t make much progress in the last 8 years I just kind of existed”. Gaining experience and knowledge is important so make sure that whatever you are doing, you are doing for a purpose. If you go traveling, its to learn and gain personal growth towards your goal in life. Use your time trying things but always make it trying towards the purpose of growth, enquiring skills, trying to find work you love.
In this society you have to work to survive, so if you have to work find the work that you will enjoy.
I feel like when people hit 20 years old they think “oh I have plenty of time” and usually your parents will say so too. It really depends if you want to get started now, if you want to follow your dreams and live your dream life now or at 50-60 years old. Listen to yourself and have self confidence. When you are younger you kind of know what things you find exciting or fields you would love to dive into and try but we constantly have other peoples opinions like our parents, teachers or friends which may or may not collide with your own opinions . Have self confidence and listen to what you are telling yourself. Why waste 10 years not doing something you love because you never had the self confidence to do it? Or because your parents or teachers wanted you to do something else? Thats 10 less years you could be doing something that excites you, 10 less years you could be living your awesome life, 10 less years you could be more advanced, skilled at your profession and creating better things for yourself and other people. If you have an idea of something you would like to try at 20, why wouldn’t you do it?
Don’t be afraid to start living your dream life now, don’t be afraid to want to do what you love no matter what age you are. You only have one life, make the most of the time you have left. Start now.
It takes a lot of courage to put aside fear and move forward and it means a change of mindset. Instead of saying and thinking “I can’t” you need to say ” I will” and ” I am”. Great article and def encouragement to young people everywhere.