How Not to Waste Your 20s
38: Set up your fundamentals in your 20s and take it easier in your 30s.
Welcome reader! Today’s topic is something we wish someone had told us in our 20s - steps that move the needle and bring the result you want to have. These are not necessarily steps but tips one could call them. We are creating articles such as this one because the 20s are the ultimate years to leverage your young energy and use it to build up the fundamentals that will follow you for the rest of your life. Should you have everything figured out in your 20s? Most won’t. Should you put in the effort to be the best you can be?
That should be your mission.
Picture “borrowed” from Reddit user.
What You Have To Understand
Time is limited
The younger you are, the slower time passes. After you hit 25, you realize things are not the same anymore. After you hit 30, you realize that’s not the case anymore. The older you are, the faster time goes. The sooner you accept this and realize how things work, it will make more sense. Average take their time for granted. Between 25-30 is when reality hits most. Realizing that the only way you will get out of your situation is to either win the lotto or start putting in the effort you have never put in. Younger readers should fear this. Getting to be 27 and not having a wake-up call is fearful. Readers who already experienced it or are older - can all agree that our statement is true. Luckily, you are consuming the right material and paying attention to limited resources - your time.
Shoutout to Twitter anon jaskOust.
Energy levels
After you realize that time is limited resources. Next on the list of the realizations should be your energy levels. One of the highest leverages that the 20s bring is your energy. Doing multiple things trought the day without getting tired. That is the leverage that doesn’t get enough attention. As you get older = things get harder. Diet, sleep, and supplementation are more important in your daily routine. Energy levels go down and paying attention to small details is important. Our older read into the importance of energy levels.
Setting up fundamentals right
The whole point of putting in the extra work during your early life is to set yourself up for the long run. Using everything you have to your advantage and taking the pedal off later in life. One good internship, a few strong social connections, and side income from the business you have started with a few clicks from your bedroom. Combined with the knowledge that time and energy are limited resources. Hard to beat. Another importance of building the moment in your 20s is that everyone will offer you a chance. That’s not the option you will have as you get older. Don’t fall for the idea that life is done if you don’t make it in your 20s, that’s wrong… Legendary Jim Simons (RIP) has started the hedge fund in his 40s. Understand your capabilities and the importance of setting up early - watching your life quality improve as you age.
Your life improves in your 30s if you have done the 20s right.
Avoiding Mistakes In Your 20s
Setting up fundamentals involves making as few mistakes as possible while hedging against what will happen betting on yourself. Knowing that all the actions you take have consequences down the road. We aimed to gather a list covering fundamentals to ensure you move things in the right direction. Starting the list with the most important one out of all…
1) You can’t get your health back: Drinking, drugs, sleepless nights, and processed food all get to you. Plus they take your health. We all know someone in their late 20s looking like they are in their 40s. The sooner you realize you can’t regain your health, the better choices you will make early in life. Getting proper diet, sleep, and always working to improve your life quality. We are not saying you should become the Huberman type. But neither should you be someone who doesn’t care about it. The healthier you are, the better you will perform, becoming more efficient. It’s a cycle most don’t give enough attention to. Remember you can’t regain your health.
2) Buy only stuff for yourself: This concept is hard to grasp. It is much harder when you are in your 20s and everything around you is based on a certain status. Do you wear a Rolex? This means you must have cash. Do you drive a Lambo? Your business operation must be doing well because you can afford them. Sooner or later, you realize that Rolex was bought with monthly payments and Lambo was rented. This is a standard guru secret no one wants to tell you about. Should you live frugally? Not at all. Minimalism combined with elegance is what you should strive for. Buying items you care about - what brings you joy. Having somewhere deep in your mind that the Herman Miller chair might not be the best thing to flex. But your back 15 years down the road will thank you for it - considering you are spending days sitting on it. If you can afford nice luxury stuff… Do it. You will realize that all life-changing items cost up to 2k$, and everything else wastes money. Chasing status and prestige is not a game you should focus on in your 20s. Leave it to those playing shallow games. You are better off maximizing assets or your performance with it.
3) Don’t waste your time with the wrong crowd: Nothing will stunt you more than hanging around peers who have been in the same place for years. Talking about the same stuff they discussed years ago and remembering the glory days behind them. All their focus is on the past, and they never discuss the future. You are better off finding a new group to hang around with. Either that or you must tame your fire to be on the same level as your peers. Other options? Start going to where the people you want to be associated with are hanging out. Online communities, elite gyms, or country clubs. Can you afford them? Go for it. Something we have described in our Pay 2 Play model that will take over the internet.
4) Treat your employer accordingly: You are not there to give them your life. Neither are there any benefits from you being loyal to their psyop. You are there because they are paying you for your performance. We often see this with young readers - "They care about us" - "We are like a big family". Don’t fall for those. They are spread for a reason to create someone dependent and loyal to them. Realizing in your 20s that your free time should be spent building a business on a side. If you follow our advice, you already know what we think about the employers and how you should approach them. Read our corporate cheat sheet and apply the principles you can find inside. Treat it as part of your journey that you will use to your benefit and fund your operations.
5) Follow the money: One of your goals should be to pick the path that will allow you to get the most money out. Coding and sales (Tech to be precise) are the paths that most readers should focus on. Front office finances (IB, PE) is another one you should consider - the key here is for them to be about Sales → M&A. Again, when you compare it with the effort you will have to put in to achieve the same, you can with knowing some code. Incomparable. Regarding job hunting, it’s not easy at the moment. But no one can deny that it’s still possible to land a role that allows you to maximize income with a bit of maneuvering.
In your 20s, you learn. In your 30s, you earn - Frank Perdue
6) Going out is a major waste of time: No, this doesn’t mean you should stay in and never go out. Quit the opposite. You should go out and be social. However, going out 1x vs. 4x is huge on your body. The benefits themselves are minimal. The clubs are not what they used to be, and the chances of meeting quality companionship are nonexistent. If you are going out to improve social interactions - it makes sense to a certain point. More to become comfortable with yourself and learn how to talk with strangers. At the same time, don't give too much of your valuable time to it - with time, you will realize most nights out are a major waste of time.
7) Importance of social skills: We can all agree that rapid technological advancement is creating a bunch of generalists. How to get the advantage? Eliminating the whole layer of competition and leveling it in the sense everyone is playing the same game. The junior tech roles are already feeling it. Realize that interviews are not only about technical knowledge anymore (remember leveling up the field) but also because candidates getting roles will pull the strings others won’t. Understanding social skills makes an impact. How do you practice those? Going out, talking to random strangers, and understanding human psychology. Read a good book, go out and practice, fail a few interviews, and it will all start to make sense.
8) The constant need for traveling is a defense mechanism: You are lost? Travel. Not sure what your next step should be? Travel. Problems at home? Travel. At least that’s what society tells you is the right thing to do. Travel so you can find yourself. There is truth in it. Overall, traveling is a form of coping. You will have to return to the home base. The problem with multiple yearly travel is that building anything meaningful while moving is hard. Not to mention that you can’t have a serious career traveling. Next time you meet someone bragging about traveling and how they love it. Realize they are escaping from something that they can’t fix in their life. We are sure someone will take this out of context and interpret it as we said you should not travel. Wrong. You should travel. However, those travels should not take more than a month out of the year - your time can be spent better.
Different case if you are traveling because of business reasons.
9) Going to college? Get an internship: We will not turn this into a college read about whether it's worth it. We're leaving it to you to decide that. If you decide to go the college route, the number one goal you should focus on is getting a big logo internship. It will guarantee you a job afterward and help you connect with others on a mission similar to yours - setting you up for the long term. If you play your cards right, you are guaranteed a role bringing 150k+ - 1 to 2 years out of your college. That's a pessimistic approach - realistically, it can be achieved much faster.
10) Avoid the noise: TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter. They are all noise. They are not noise for those buildings and using them to their advantage. Personal brand, affiliates offers or bringing value to the others. You can leverage all of those to access private communities and make money. That’s what social media should be used for. Mindlessly scrolling and consuming short-form content is something you should avoid. The same applies if you follow any gurus projecting unnecessary noise. Luxury watches, cars, lifestyle… They all are noise. Find new role models one that want good for you.
11) Hedge against the future: This sounds ridiculous because it is. It's one of the funny things that brings joy if you hit the mark. Make claims and watch them unfold. Bet on yourself. Your future assumption should be as legitimate as possible. Since we are sharing most of our takes on Twitter - below you can find a solid example of what we mean by betting on yourself. First, it builds up confidence if you realize the patterns around you. Second, it serves as a hedge as you can do the opposite or put yourself in a favorable position. The key is that you want to have it as evidence - written. Your best bet is to write it down with the date next to it, or if you share your insights with others do what we did below. Over time, you will notice patterns others won’t. Where do those patterns come in handy? In situations where you use them to make money.
12) Forget the debt: There are situations when you can’t avoid getting it. Should you force them to? Should you willingly go into debt to buy an apartment, house, or car in your 20s? No, you should not. Most are unsure what shoes they will wear, yet far from understanding they will be obliged to pay a solid amount out of their paycheck for the next 30 years. Your goal should be to buy assets and be liquid to move fast. You should have zero debt and have enough cash in your 20s. Positioning yourself to feel like you are king when you compare yourself to your peers who are struggling with unnecessary purchases on the debt.
Shoutout to Mark for sharing a gem that we found relevant for those in their 20s. Put the hotel part out of the equation (for now) and understand the main point. It’s a dangerous one.
13) Forget about your "free time": Push. Push hard. Use everything you can to build. Internship, career, side business, taking care of your health, or meaningful relationships. They all require effort and energy to work in the end. That’s why you should use your free time for it. Taking part in those is what matters. Weekends? The same principles apply. Some use them as downtime. You should use them to catch up on the things you didn't have time for during the week. Understand that results don’t come without work and you don’t have the time you think you have.
14) Start paying attention to art: We emphasize the importance of social skills as stated above. Next on the list are creativity levels. Similar principles apply. Everyone is a generalist and has the same technical knowledge - AI. What’s your advantage? Creativity. Everyone has a different way of working on it, and not the same motives will inspire everyone. However, knowing the classic paintings or learning more about certain authors will get you places. Not just paintings, sculptures, music, or any other material - collectible (art-like) items. It will fire up your imagination and creativity. Not to mention a strong correlation between wealthy individuals and art. Something you will be able to leverage depending on the social groups you find yourself in.
15) You become what you consume: Music, movies, social media, peers, and your environment. They all shape you and mold you into the person you are becoming. Luckily you can change most of them. Your goal? Consuming proper information and improving yourself. Reinforcing the proven set of beliefs and eliminating the rest. Over time, you realize how consuming the proper information turns you into a different person - one worth being around. Don’t waste your energy watching stuff you are not 100%, or that is not improving your life. Less is more.
16) Luck favors those who put in the effort: Luck works mysteriously. You can’t predict it, you can’t wish for it, and you can’t pay for it. But luck somehow always works in the favor of winners. Those who put in the hard work and expect nothing in return. Your best bet is to follow the same pattern. Work hard, be respectful, help others, and luck will find your way. When will you know luck has found your way? When others around start calling you lucky because of x or y reason. Whatever reason they choose to call you out remember that your effort played the main role while the luck was there to push you a bit to achieve what you achieved.
17) Give expecting nothing in return: We often preach about. You have all the doors open when you help others, expecting nothing in return. Showing a bit of goodwill and adding value to others goes a long way. Easiest way to build a reputation and show others you are valuable. It should be self-explanatory.
18) Child-like curiosity: Unbeatable. You should be following the children's approach to figuring things out. Diving deeper and deeper. Asking more questions and poking the points you don’t understand. We all know that one child who seems to ask you multiple connected questions each time they see you. That should be your approach to life. Always willing to look for more. Always challenge the claims and answers you have been given to achieve more. That is how you form an opinion worth having.
19) Keep a journal: Nothing beats reading those and looking at what used to be your focus or main concern back in the day - realizing how far you have come on your journey. Our approach to journaling has always been the same - health, life, business/career, and misc. Those four categories can serve as a baseline on how you should structure it. How should you approach writing your thoughts down? All on you. Our advice is to play around and find what works for you - there is no right answer. The most important part? Never throw your journal away. They age as a fine wine, and you will have an option to revisit them.
20) Realize no one is coming to save you: Not your government. Not your family. Not your friends. Not your better half. No one can save you from yourself. There are no handouts in this life - the sooner you realize it, the easier it will be. You are alone. Do you want to get something and ensure you are safe? You know the solution to it. Put in the work - you are the only one who can save yourself.
Summary: You can do whatever you want in your 20s. No one knows what's best for you except you. Keep in mind. Decisions you make will impact another decision - it’s a chain. Ultimately leaving you with less health, energy, or money. Want to get more out of your life in your 30s and improve it? You already know what to do. Act accordingly.
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