{"id":22786,"date":"2019-11-18T19:03:23","date_gmt":"2019-11-19T02:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moneyppl.com\/?p=22786"},"modified":"2024-03-25T16:50:42","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T23:50:42","slug":"30-lessons-people-learn-far-too-late-in-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.moneyppl.com\/30-lessons-people-learn-far-too-late-in-life\/22786\/","title":{"rendered":"30 Lessons People Learn Far Too Late In Life"},"content":{"rendered":"
As we get older, we all learn valuable lessons. Looking back to your younger years, you may have thought, “I wish I knew then what I know now”. <\/span><\/p>\n We can’t go back and change the past, but we can always heed advice from people who are older, wiser, and more successful. Here are 30 valuable pieces of advice that most people learn far too late in life. <\/span><\/p>\n Everything in life is temporary. No matter how much we want something to last forever, it will eventually end. Even if a couple is married for a lifetime, one of the spouses will eventually pass away first. Same goes with pets, jobs, and anything else we care about. When we are young, it’s all too easy to take things for granted. Remember that you only have a limited amount of time to spend with your parents, friends, and family.<\/span><\/p>\n The advice “everything is temporary” can apply to negative things, too. Even if you are going through one of the worst moments of your life, it will eventually pass. By reminding ourselves that everything will eventually end, it becomes easier to let go of things that are bothering us.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n So many people complain about small everyday things. They might complain about the weather, traffic, or the quality of the meal that they ate last night. If you’re reading this right now, it means that you were living in a first-world country. You have access to the internet and you are an educated person. This means that you have so much more than so many other people in the world, and you have things to be grateful for. By focusing on gratitude instead of complaining about your life, it will become significantly better. <\/span><\/p>\n Also, put yourself in another person’s shoes. Do you enjoy hearing other people complain? No one does. We just want to tell the other person that it’s not so bad, or to get over it. Try to take the perspective of someone else. If you truly cannot get over something, write it down on a piece of paper. This will help you vent, but it also gives you the ability to see your problem from an outside perspective. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Unfortunately, life isn’t fair. Someone might cheat their way to success, cut in line, or get away with a crime. We can choose to either let this get us down or simply realize that it’s a fact of life. There is no use in getting upset over this. In fact, karma might eventually catch up with this person further down the line.<\/span><\/p>\n Bearing that in mind, you can avoid wasting energy pining over how things are unfair. Instead, accept the unfairness of life and choose to focus on the things that went right for you. Many elderly people would probably give you this kind of advice if you asked them to look back on unnecessary things they wasted energy on in life.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n It’s useless to be afraid of things and to let them hold us back from doing what we want to do. Most of the time, fear is in our minds. And once we actually go to take action on these things, the fear only lasts a moment and we are fine. Think about every time you were afraid to get a shot at the doctor’s office. The fear of needles is often more painful than the needle itself.<\/span><\/p>\n During a speech, <\/span>Will Smith said<\/span><\/a>, “The problem with fear is that it lies. The daily confrontation with fear has become a real practice with me.” He goes on to tell a story of how he went skydiving with his friends. The night before, he could barely sleep because he was so terrified. He spent his entire day feeling scared, up until the moment he jumped. Then, he realized that he had nothing to be afraid of and that it was actually an amazing experience. It was a realization for him that fear is a waste of time. It doesn’t serve you.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n When we are young, our friends mean the world to us. We would rather ditch family dinner in favor of spending a Friday night out. But at the end of the day, your family are the ones who love you unconditionally. Friends come and go when we graduate school, switch jobs, and break up with boyfriends and girlfriends. But your family is forever.<\/span><\/p>\n We are not suggesting that you give up your friendships. In fact, there always needs to be a balance between having friends and spending time with your family. But never take your family for granted or treat them like they are second-best. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n “Money can’t buy happiness” is an old phrase that you have probably heard before. Money can help with a lot of things in life. There are plenty of problems that would be solved if you only had enough money to throw at the issue. However, money cannot buy love. It cannot buy true friendship, and it will not make you happy 24\/7. Even the richest people in the world still have bad days and still feel disappointed and upset over things going on in their lives. <\/span><\/p>\n There was <\/span>a study <\/span><\/a>that found out that money makes you significantly happier; that is, until you earn $105,000 per year. Beyond that six-figure salary, the level of happiness pretty much stays the same. The excess material things truly doesn’t make a difference. In fact, if you are making more money, it probably means you have a ton of additional responsibilities that will add stress to your life. In the words of the Notorious B.I.G, “More money, more problems.” <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n In the United States, 50% of marriages end in divorce. While there are many reasons people choose to split, one of the leading causes of divorce is that people no longer feel compatible with their partner. Some people are willing to admit that when they married their spouse, they had plenty of doubts about their personality. They hoped that someday they would grow out of bad or immature behavior. Others believed that with enough love, they can actually change or “fix” the issues that their partner has.<\/span><\/p>\n In reality, most people are not going to change who they are, even as the years go on. It takes a lot of therapy, or a near-death-experience for someone to be shaken enough to change. So if you are going to get married, you need to be prepared to spend the rest of your life with the person they are <\/span>right now<\/span><\/i>. No matter how much you love someone or want to fix them, change always has to come from within oneself. Instead of trying to change someone, try to find someone who is great just the way they are.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you are being treated badly by the people around you, remind yourself that it is because they already have this preconceived notion in their mind of who you are. This does not define who you truly are, and it’s still possible to change your circumstances. Start by loving and respecting yourself. Forgive yourself for your past and begin to treat yourself like the person you want to be.<\/span><\/p>\n Imagine that you were moving to a new city where no one knew who you were. You could present yourself as the person that you truly feel you are inside. These new people will have absolutely no history of what you have done in the past or the mistakes that you have made before. They will judge you based on who you are in the moment. Remember that at the end of the day, you<\/em> are the only person that will be there for the entirety of your life. You might as well love yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n There is a famous Warren Buffet quote; “Look for the job you would take if you didn’t need a job. Don’t sleepwalk through life. You really want to be doing what you love doing.” This is absolutely great advice. There are some people out there who wake up, go to work, and come home just to zone out in front of the TV. This is sleepwalking through life.<\/span><\/p>\n Instead of just continuing to go through the motions every day, start to do things that you feel passionate about. Remember that you only get one life to do things you want to do. We are not suggesting that you quit your job and completely abandon everything, but try to incorporate more of your “bucket list” items into each day.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some people go through life feeling self-conscious about themselves. They may be afraid that people are staring at them, judging their clothing, or a number of other things. In reality, most people are just thinking about themselves. Ask yourself what is in your mind most of the time. Probably 80 to 90% of your thoughts are consumed about your own life. So what makes you think that other people are wasting their time worrying about you? <\/span><\/p>\n This is not to make you feel bad about yourself. But rather, this should alleviate some anxiety that you might feel on a day-to-day basis. If you are worried that people are thinking bad thoughts about you, chances are they’re not thinking about you at all. Once you realize this, it can be very helpful to get over anxiety. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some people go through life on the easy route. People who hate learning in school are eager to drop out or graduate. After school, they immediately want to start working and are not interested in learning anything new. These people are often very close-minded. Without a sense of curiosity in life, you really miss out on so many amazing and interesting things.<\/span><\/p>\n If you truly want to succeed in life and be as enriched as humanly possible, you should never stop learning. No matter how good you might get at something, this does not mean you know everything. In fact, the people who pretend to know everything often come off as being pompous and ignorant. Always stay curious, and try to learn something new every day. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n There are certain paths in life that are very clear-cut. For example, if you want to be a doctor, you go to college, then medical school, then take on a residency at a hospital. You’re a doctor. But for some career paths that are non-traditional, like a YouTuber, there is no formula that every single person can successfully follow. A lot of people have big hopes and dreams, but they give up trying because they get caught up in the “how”. Without knowing every step of the process, it can be very scary, and many people give up before they even start. <\/span><\/p>\n Instead of worrying so much about how to get from point A to point B, at least gauge where your destination is. Focus on that intently, and try to manifest it into reality. Soon enough, you will begin to see opportunities all around you that will help you achieve your goal. And as time goes on, you will be able to achieve your dreams as long as you never give up trying.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Nowadays, millennials get a lot of flack for going out to eat too much or buying expensive coffee at Starbucks. It can be difficult to imagine how making small sacrifices today can pay off in the long run. But in reality, small changes truly can add up. This is why so many people are adopting the FI\/RE movement, which means “Financial independence, retire early.” They live an extremely frugal lifestyle so that they can retire in their 40s.<\/span><\/p>\n On the flip side, if you choose to completely indulge in the present day, you might end up with nothing when it is time to retire. Try to take a step back and evaluate if you are truly spending your money wisely. Start by making a budget, and it will become clear to you how much you need to cut back if you want a comfortable future. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n No matter how tough things get, happiness is always a choice. Obviously, this is easier said than done. It’s not possible to turn off sadness or angry in a split second just because you choose to be happy. But you can choose how long you mope in your sadness. If you struggle with depression, try to “build a ladder.” Start at the smallest rung by thinking of something happy and positive. Keep going by adding more and more reasons to be happy. Eventually, you’ll find you are in a better mood.<\/span><\/p>\n Being happy cannot be given to us by a relationship or money. It comes from inside. Remember, there are plenty of rich and married people who feel miserable about their lives. Try to see the world with a “glass half full,” and things will begin to get better.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/span>Most people in the United States coast through life eating and drinking whatever they want. Suddenly, they are diagnosed with cancer, diabetes, or heart disease. Finally, people begin to care about eating right, but by then it’s already too late.<\/span><\/p>\n30. Everything Is Temporary<\/span><\/h2>\n
29. Stop Complaining<\/span><\/h2>\n
28. Life Isn’t Fair<\/span><\/h2>\n
27. Live Without Fear<\/span><\/h2>\n
26. Family Matters More Than Friends<\/span><\/h2>\n
25. Money Can’t Buy Happiness<\/span><\/h2>\n
24. Don’t Try to Change Other People<\/span><\/h2>\n
23. Treat Yourself With Love and Respect<\/span><\/h2>\n
22. Don’t Sleepwalk Through Life<\/span><\/h2>\n
21. People Aren’t Thinking About You As Much As You Think<\/span><\/h2>\n
20. Never Stop Learning<\/span><\/h2>\n
19. Know Your Destination<\/span><\/h2>\n
18. The Sacrifices You Make Now Will Pay Off in the Future<\/span><\/h2>\n
17. Happiness Is A Choice<\/span><\/h2>\n
16. Take Care of Your Health <\/span><\/h2>\n