You do not have to know exactly where your life will lead between ages 20 and 30.
But you do have to begin laying a foundation capable of carrying the life that follows.
The title makes the point:
SPEND YOUTH WISELY.
Now we will explore that obvious point further.
The plain fact is that YOU—youth—knew nothing before arriving here.
Think of an empty vessel as a lower-level example.
The container waits for whatever purpose, substance and experience will be placed inside it.
Apply that thought to a human life and behold the mystery:
Boundless possibilities wait to be entered, experienced and understood.
During your earliest years, parents and other authority figures take the helm.
They feed you.
Teach you.
Correct you.
Protect you.
And yes—they get their way with you.
Eventually, you begin adding and subtracting from what you were given.
You discover what fits, what does not, who you might become and what you want to change.
Now we are off and running into both the known and unknown.
What a journey!
SOME JOURNEY CAVEATS
Before moving forward, consider these warnings:
- BEWARE OF DISTRACTIONS.
Distractions interfere with focus, progress and appreciation. A few moments of entertainment can quietly become years of avoidance.
- REMEMBER THE UNIVERSAL LAW.
Whatever you get into eventually gets into you.
Choose environments, habits, relationships and pursuits carefully.
- WATCH THE COMFORT ZONE.
Comfort zones are no respecter of persons.
They sedate everyone into inaction.
Rest is healthy.
Permanent avoidance disguised as comfort is not.
- RECOGNIZE ADDICTION.
Addictions may hide inside entertainment, substances, spending, gambling, food, attention, technology or relationships.
Your defenses include awareness, boundaries, moderation and appropriate help when moderation is no longer working.
- REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE THE ONLY YOU.
You are not the first person to begin this journey.
You will not be the last.
But you are the only YOU who will travel your particular road.
Advice can guide you.
Comparison should not erase you.
SOME POINTS OF INTEREST
Now consider the possibilities:
- The world is open for exploration—but choices still carry consequences.
- More may be possible than you presently understand.
- Trial, error and learning as you go will help educate you.
- Opportunities are waiting for your participation.
- Confidence grows through movement, not endless preparation.
- Lightheartedness can keep difficulty from becoming heaviness—but seriousness must still report for duty when responsibility calls.
THE DAY YOUR TEENS STARTED
Teenagers often know nothing and everything at the same time.
LOL.
They will argue both positions too!
The teen years begin revealing personal will:
What you like.
What you dislike.
What you believe.
What you question.
What you refuse.
Ignorance begins producing curiosity—and curiosity, when properly used, begins reducing ignorance.
THE DAY YOUR TEENS ENDED
During adolescence, much of life was directed by others.
Parents made rules.
Teachers assigned homework.
Schedules were prepared.
Somebody repeatedly told you what came next.
Then the teen years ended.
Being told what to do began decreasing—and responsibility began increasing.
A mysterious open space appeared, calling upon YOU to fill it.
With what?
How?
Where?
The free ride was ending.
DO SOMETHING
Every able person eventually has to do something constructive.
We are mobile machines equipped with prompts, curiosity, memory, senses and legs.
When we remain still too long, we begin working against our own design.
But deciding what to do can create a deer-in-the-headlights experience.
Too many choices may produce no choice at all.
Here is the first important lesson:
You do not need a perfect lifetime plan before taking a useful next step.
POSTING TIME-OUT BREAK
We began life unable to list one thing we knew.
Then we reached the post-teen years needing to know almost everything at once.
Here is what young people are not always told clearly enough:
The years between 20 and 30 can produce tremendous reward—but they do not come with do-overs.
You can recover from mistakes.
You can change direction.
But the decade itself cannot be replayed.
AGE 20 TO 30
High school provides education, friendships, fun and experiences.
Afterward, people often recognize what they wish they had taken more seriously—and what deserved far less attention.
The twenties can create a similar illusion.
Ten years feels like a long time at age 20.
Then age 30 arrives and asks:
“What did we build?”
PAUSE FOR CAUSE.
The goal is not to have everything finished by 30.
The goal is to establish momentum, responsibility, useful skills and increasing self-knowledge.
BUILD A FOUNDATION
Your path may include one or several of the following:
EMPLOYMENT
Supporting yourself becomes an important reality.
A first job does not need to be your final identity.
It can teach:
Punctuality.
Responsibility.
Customer service.
Teamwork.
Patience.
Money management.
How to deal with people you did not choose.
Take the job seriously even if it is not yet your dream.
Work can build the person who will eventually be ready for the dream.
COLLEGE AND EDUCATION
College may be the correct path when a chosen profession requires a degree or when the education justifies its cost and purpose.
Do not attend simply because everyone else is going.
Consider:
What will the education cost?
What opportunities can it realistically create?
Does the profession require the degree?
What debt might follow?
Will the subject remain valuable even if your direction changes?
Education has worth beyond income—but the financial outcome should not be ignored when large costs are involved.
Learn before borrowing.
Know what you are purchasing.
TRADES, APPRENTICESHIPS AND CERTIFICATIONS
A four-year degree is not the only doorway into a respected and rewarding life.
Skilled trades, apprenticeships, technical programs and professional certifications can create strong careers, useful expertise and financial independence.
The world needs people who know how to build, repair, operate, organize and solve practical problems.
Skill has dignity.
MAKING YOUR OWN WAY
Entrepreneurship may appeal to those willing to accept risk, responsibility and uncertainty.
A business idea alone is not a business.
It also requires customers, numbers, discipline, service and enough humility to learn what the marketplace is actually saying.
Dream big.
Start intelligently.
Test before betting everything.
MILITARY SERVICE
Military service can provide training, structure, travel, education benefits, maturity and confidence.
It also involves serious commitments, personal risk and obligations that must be understood before signing.
Ask questions.
Compare branches and roles.
Verify promises.
Read the agreement.
Make certain important terms are written—not merely spoken during recruitment.
Service may become a strong path, but it deserves an informed decision.
SERVICE, CAREGIVING AND OTHER PATHS
Some people spend portions of their twenties serving families, communities, ministries or loved ones.
That work may not always produce an impressive title or immediate income, but it can develop patience, leadership, compassion and endurance.
Still, service should not become a permanent excuse for neglecting your own growth and future stability.
CHANGING AS YOU GO
You must choose a direction—but you are permitted to adjust it.
Choosing does not mean imprisoning yourself forever.
You may discover that a field does not fit.
You may recognize a stronger ability.
A new opportunity may appear.
You may need to stop, learn and redirect.
Changing wisely is not failure.
Refusing to move because you fear choosing imperfectly is how years disappear.
WHAT SHOULD THE DECADE PRODUCE?
By the end of your twenties, you do not need to possess everything.
But ideally, you should have developed more of the following:
- A dependable work ethic.
- Useful and marketable skills.
- Better judgment.
- Increasing financial responsibility.
- Healthier relationship standards.
- The ability to delay gratification.
- Experience recovering from mistakes.
- Awareness of your strengths and weaknesses.
- A clearer sense of what deserves your time.
- A foundation sturdy enough for the next stage.
WORTHY NOTE:
Your twenties are fleeting.
They should help construct a foundation for the rest of your journey because life often becomes more complicated as responsibilities increase.
THE UNIVERSAL LAW RETURNS
Whatever you enter begins entering you.
Choose wisely.
The workplace shapes you.
Friends influence you.
Habits train you.
Debt follows you.
Discipline strengthens you.
Addiction captures you.
Learning enlarges you.
Service deepens you.
You are building yourself even when you believe you are merely passing time.
PEARLS INSIGHT
Youth is not wasted only through obvious wrongdoing.
It can also be wasted through endless delay, passive distraction and refusing to commit to any constructive direction.
You do not need to know everything.
You need enough wisdom to begin—and enough humility to keep learning.
RICHIE SPEAKS
Young person, listen:
Stop waiting to feel completely ready.
Readiness often arrives after you begin.
Take a job.
Learn a skill.
Study with purpose.
Serve intelligently.
Save some money.
Avoid unnecessary debt.
Choose companions carefully.
Protect your health.
Get out of the comfort zone before it furnishes a permanent room for you.
And remember:
Whatever you get into will begin getting into you.
FINAL SAY
Spend youth wisely instead of misspending it foolishly.
You may change direction.
You may make mistakes.
You may begin again.
But do not surrender the decade to indecision.
Take the helm.
Choose a compass point.
Start building.
Now—you know.
— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
https://pearlsforthesoul.com
Been expecting you