Things I've learnt as I get closer to 30

Things I've learnt as I get closer to 30

• Wednesday, 5 August 2015

Later this year I'm going to be reaching a milestone of a birthday.. 30..EEKK!  As the day draws nearer its got me thinking about the things I've achieved,learnt,discovered and also found to regret over the past 29 years. I wanted to share these with you all, partly as a way of keeping a record of how I feel now, so that I can look back on it in the future and smile, and partly to hopefully give you young ones something to think about...

1. Friends- choose them wisely and hold onto the good ones

 I've been through more friends than hot dinners over the past 29 years.. there are some that I truly miss, some that I regret ever associating with and some that I still have close to me today and love to pieces. My advice, don't forget those who've stuck with you through thick and thin, don't palm your mates off for a lad and under no circumstances live with your best friend and expect your relationship to be the same as it was before. 

2. Even if it scares the shit out of you, you should probably do it

I never thought I'd venture to India for 9 weeks to teach people things, I never thought I'd organise events people actually want to come to, I never thought I'd write things that people would be interested in reading- but I did it all anyway. Whats the point in being scared of something that could lead onto so many more amazing things? I really live by this one, fuck the anxiousness, fuck what you think other people might think..just do it. 

3.Uni isn't everything

I've been to uni,studied what I thought I should,spent shit loads of my parents money and now don't use my educational achievements at all. If I could go back in time I'd chose to study marketing,events management or graphic design. However, that realisation has only come to me in the past few years since starting my blog and getting into the world of social media.  Don't let anyone force you into going to uni,don't go because you feel your parents would be disappointed if you didn't and most importantly, take time to think about what you want to do afterwards.

4. Save,save,save

One of my biggest regrets to this day is that I haven't been saving a bit of cash here and there. I now work in financial services now and its really opened my eyes to how much we all need to save for our future. Yes,it sounds boring but imagine a 60yr old you being able to jet off on that luxury holiday,get pissed on the beach and not have to count the pennies the morning after- I only started paying into a pension about 5 years ago.. i wish they'd taught us about these things at school as mine is looking rather pathetic!

5. Live on your own (at least for a little while)

Okay well this might not help so much with the saving but,for me, living by myself for a year in my lovely studio flat massively helped me develop into a more independent person. I learnt to manage my bills,how to look after myself and most of all how to feel content with my own company. 

6.Weekends WILL change

Even just a few years back I remember counting down the days until the big night out on Friday, followed by a hungover day session on Saturday then lunchtime drinking on Sunday. Now..I am so precious with my free time that the thought of spending the whole weekend hungover,regretful and skint makes me feel queasy before even touching a glass of wine!

7. Shout about what you do

I, for one, am a huge lover of blowing my own trumpet. Be proud of your achievements and use them to your advantage to open up doors for new opportunities. Obviously there is a skill in doing this the right way, don't piss people off on your journey to greatness!

8. Be yourself

Dont change for men,don't change to fit in with your 'friends', don't be something someone else wants you to be. I've fallen into this trap a number of times and its so much harder to keep up the facade.

9.Parents aren't so bad

 I look back now on how I was in my late teens cringe at how awful I was to my mum and dad. I praise them for not blowing their tops with me. I was an utter nightmare,crazy person,bank emptier and pain in the arse. My parents are the best therapists I could ask for, they regularly listen to me moan,show concern at my misadventures and rein in my outbursts.

 I think they are proud of the person I've grown to be. They love hearing about my adventures,keep me in check when it comes to unnecessary drama and also offer me sound advice. 

I'll probably add to this list as the months go by... 9 seems a bit of an odd number to stop at so, take this as work in progress. 

XOXO