Life in your twenties is way different from how life was for you as a teenager. More than ever before, it is upon you to take responsibility for your existence and how your life turns out.
If you are in your twenties and don’t understand what to make of this phase, understand that nobody has it all figured out at once. However, there are certain mistakes you cannot afford to make in your twenties.
These mistakes can cost you so much benefits that you ought to enjoy in this period of your life. How can you know them? We’ll be discussing them in this article.
1. Don’t live to please everyone
We sometimes downplay how important it is to make friends with ourselves/build an intrapersonal relationship. A wise man once said that if you spend your twenties trying to get in the good books of everyone you’ll realise when you turn 30 that no one was thinking about you. That is true.
Changing yourself to please everyone would make only you unhappy. You’d lose touch with your true self. And that in itself would pose a threat to the trajectory your life takes.
It is unwise of you to think that you can please everyone. Ask yourself, ‘can I take on the personality of everyone around me?’ No, you can’t. That would mean signing yourself up for insanity.
Develop a relationship with yourself first. In the process of spending more time with yourself, you discover things about yourself and work hard to improve yourself. Your focus is directed to something more productive than having to focus your thoughts on how people perceive you.
2. Ensure that you don’t lose friendships that are important
You’d be shooting yourself in the leg by not being intentional about the friends that you know are important to you. It’s true that in your twenties, responsibilities are heightened, and you need to be more focused and up and doing.
It’s true that more time will be dedicated to making the most of your life, and it would take a lot of intentionality to take out time for leisure.
Grow with your friends. Let them know that you care. Give one another assurance. Make every moment of contact and interaction worthwhile. Send them food, write them, tell them you love them.
3. Wasting time on plans and doing nothing
There might be the urge to want to discover the path your life would go all through your existence; all at once. That’s what we humans are known for right? Being curious and wanting to know what the end has in store for us.
However, if you keep planning all through your twenties when will you eventually execute them. You plan so hard because you are scared to make mistakes. You believe that when you spend a long time planning, execution will be hitch free. However, your journey in life can only be speculated not defined word for word.
A wise man once said that you need to succeed is on the other side of fear. Are you afraid of failing? Don’t chicken out. Do it regardless. What if you don’t fail?
In your twenties, give yourself to taking bold steps. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Don’t waste your life by putting your time to waste.
4. Living without guidance
You might be making a big mistake in your twenties if you don’t give yourself to being guided. It could be by a mentor, coach, a leader, or anybody else you can learn from. Be teachable, allow these people guide you aright.
Here’s what happens when you’re guided: the people who are guiding you can see your blind spots and help you navigate life while keeping you in check. Having someone to guide you doesn’t mean that you’ll not make any mistakes. However, guidance will help you avoid mistakes that are not necessary.
5. Staying in meaningless relationships
In your twenties, by all means don’t stay in a relationship that won’t spur you to get better. It could be an abusive relationship. It could also mean that you’re in a relationship with someone who doesn’t love you. Any relationship that is not adding value to you in anyway is not worth your time, attention and energy.
Finally, in your twenties live your life. Breathe. Work. Make friends. Create memories. Make it worth your while.
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