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> Why do so many people talk about youth as some sort of idyllic time in one's life? Because youth is wasted on the young. It's a good thing that you've tried
by bhseo 17y ago
> Why do so many people talk about youth as some sort of idyllic time in one's life?
Because youth is wasted on the young.
It's a good thing that you've tried all that, even those left unfinished. The next step is to apply the Pareto principle, and stop doing a bunch of things. Do the easiest thing with the most benefit. Do what makes you happy. Do more things outside the academic and business areas. Dabbling isn't a bad thing. Here are some suggestions I find worthwhile, in no particular order:
1. Sex.
2. Meet people, help people, make friends, make allies.
3. Travel.
4. Improve your body. A healthy mind needs a healthy body.
5. Teach yourself how to cook.
6. Read books. (don't be afraid of not finishing them)
7. Learn more about the rules that govern you. Quite boring but so very useful.
8. Become a minimalist. Sell your things and stop buying things you don't need. Simplifying is good.
9. Study and practice meditation.
10. Learn how to grow, collect or hunt food.
11. Explore altered states. Some do it with wine, some do it with poetry. Exercise, alcohol, herbs, plants, fungi, pharmaceuticals, music or plenty of other activities, they can all do the trick.
12. Conquer fears.
13. Swim in the ocean.
14. Lie on the beach.
15. Don't worry be happy.
- julsonl 17y agoI love tip number 6. I get that overwhelming sense of guilt for not being able to finish a book.
- kalid 17y agoI read a sobering fact somewhere -- we'll only be able to read about 1000 books in our lifetime (50 years, 20 books a year or nearly 2 a month). Maybe 2000 or 3000 if you're a voracious reader. Given that, it doesn't make sense to waste time with a bad book when it's taking the place of a better one. This helped me with that same guilt.
- sireat 17y agoI agree with what you are saying, but a voracious reader could easily hit 10k books by late middle age. 200 books a year is not that many.
- lsc 17y agoas for 1., I agree and disagree. Physically, it will never be better than now, but emotionally, the whole experience will be better once you mature emotionally. 7. is probably the wisest item on the list. Understanding yourself, your limits, where you can push yourself productively and where you can't will pay back enormous dividends as you grow older, both in your financial, professional, and personal/emotional projects. In general, though, I would distrust people who say childhood is for being social. Young people tend to be jerks because they haven't learned better yet. Also, when you are young, you have less choice about who you do and do not associate with. I think correctly choosing your peers is the most important part of a satisfying social life. Choose people who value the person you want to be.