It’s my birthday. I’m 37 and I have some things I’d like to share, in no particular order.
1. No one thinks about you more than you do. That thing from two years ago that keeps you up at night? No one else remembers. Honor the memory and let it go.
The ideas you need to keep in mind in order to consistently improve your life as you get older are quite simple:
- believe you can get mentally stronger, because life isn't getting easier.
- read more old books, there is so much to learn from dead people, especially when you start thinking that this time is different: the nature of people doesn’t change.
- be less reactive, especially when you feel angry, all your relationships will suddenly improve.
- be more proactive with others, ask them out for a coffee if you feel like you could learn a lot from them, most people are actually happy to share what they know.
- actually listen to others, you can’t do it as long as you are busy judging them.
- figure out how to have fun every day, especially when your goals are difficult, you will increase your chances of getting there.
- stay in good shape, because it’s so much more fun to experience life in a body you like.
- foolish impulses and addictions disappear once you have a long-term meaningful purpose and are serious about it; a lot of stupid decisions are made out of boredom.
- write every day, you will notice that eloquence and mental clarity can be trained, you will also attract many more opportunities once you can effortlessly communicate your ideas.
- don’t be so busy that you wake up one day, old, realizing that you don’t have a single good friend.
- stay intellectually curious, leave your preconceptions aside, don’t jump to conclusions so quickly; the most bitter people are those who could have done something, but never did, not because they lacked intelligence, but because they lacked courage.
- don’t believe everything you read or watch on the Internet, especially if it’s about Japan.
- talk to people with the intention of learning from them, they don’t need your “fixing.”
- stay away from social media unless it’s actually improving your life.
- periodically fast, your future self will thank you.
- mindless scrolling is a sign that you don’t respect yourself, you should always have better to do with your time.
- keep learning whatever foreign language you started ten years ago, it’s worth it, there are tons of awesome people who don’t speak English.
- don’t be proud of being overworked, stressed out, on the edge all the time, you are being a mental burden on your family and friends, and one day, you will realize that your close relationships mattered more than work.
- no one honest will teach you how to get wealthy because the nature of the financial opportunities keeps changing as society and technology evolve; remember that imagining the future is more important than studying the past, although you should do both.
- relationships with people who gave up on becoming a better person are a dead-end, you will both get frustrated, life only gets better when you get better.
- be kinder to your family, one day, they'll suddenly be gone, and you will wonder why you kept getting so emotional over literally nothing.
- don’t take yourself so seriously, the most successful people out there are literally just playing.
I found a guy who goes around the US asking 70 to 100-year-olds their:
• Biggest Regrets
• Biggest Lessons
• Advice to their younger self
Oddly enough, most of their answers are the same…
Here are my top 8:
Para lelaki hebat, tolonglah isteri/mak sediakan juadah berbuka puasa bersama.
Jangan hadap phone je.
Mereka juga berpuasa.
Awak bukannya raja tinggal duduk nak makan je. Kalau pun tak bantu masak, boleh tolong setup meja.
15 minit sebelum berbuka dah duduk mula berdoa.
maturing is realizing some of you need to find some hobbies that keep you occupied because being a codependent, clingy, and needy friend runs people away.
People will come and go in your life. That’s how it is. Don’t worry about it. Don’t try to hang on to those who want to leave. The Almighty will put total strangers in your path to get you where you’re supposed to be. Trust Him.
my life got better when I realized I don’t have to be nice. being nice got me ran over, taken advantage of, stressed out and disrespected. I'm not nice. I’m a good person. There's a difference.
You might be feeling sad or low in spirit, but never opt for a temporary high by going against the Almighty. It won’t last and you’ll end up feeling worse. It will rob you of your peace and worse, you’ll incur His Wrath.