What advice would you give to your younger self?

[jasoncwarner]

Great question. I'm going to pin this issue and reply a few times in various comments.

[jasoncwarner]

I am going to add to this as they come up in mind.

[jasoncwarner]

Some adults are older in body only...do not assume because someone is grown up they are mature, know what they are doing, or even deserve your time.

[jasoncwarner]

Index funds for every single penny you can save. Earlier the better. Compound interest is MAGIC!

[jasoncwarner]

People think about you much less than you think.

[jasoncwarner]

You will need to fight for yourself and everything you want. If you don't, someone else will tell you who and what you are.

[jasoncwarner]

There will always be someone else with more....

[jasoncwarner]

If you become great, many people will end up hating you for it. This not about you, but about them.

*Unless you treated them like shit, in which case you are also a terrible person and don't be this person.

[jasoncwarner]

90% of happiness in life comes from who you decide to partner with (marry etc). The other 10% is your boss.

Work at marriage for the long-term. Leave bad bosses.

[jasoncwarner]

Time is the one thing you can't get back. Spend money to get time. Don't waste time. Distractions are ok, though don't let them become obsessions unless you want to make your life all about that.

Regret wakes you up at night.

[jasoncwarner]

Thank people even for little things. Gratitude and expressions of gratitude change people and perspectives more than anything else.

[jasoncwarner]

Floss, lift weights, eat less sugar, drink more water and sleep.

Things wear out on the body and when they do, fixing them is hard. Lifelong health is better than short term goals.

If you are not a professional athlete, think 80 years, not 5.

[jasoncwarner]

The less visible leaders are likely the brains and brawn of the organizations.

Want to see who made a company successful? Look past the visible external folks and find the heart of the organization.

Look for those and learn from them. This is where the substance will be.

I wish I knew this waaaaaaaay earlier in my career.

[jasoncwarner]

Who you hang around with will have a profound impact on your world view. Be careful. Associate with people more like who you want to be.

[jasoncwarner]

Kids need quantity time over quality time.

They need quality time, for sure, but quantity time is really, really important with them.

Make time.

[jasoncwarner]

You can't expect people to change, but you can expect behavior to change.

Don't waste your time trying to change people. Set the behavior expectation and hold that line. Let them do the work on themselves.

[jasoncwarner]

Hard work alone won't get you there, but you're never gonna get there without hard work.

You'll need luck, but work hard and be ready.

And work harder than everyone else around you.

[jasoncwarner]

Life is not fair, don't expect it to be.

People are not fair, don't expect them to be.

Good things happen to bad people all the time. And bad people get ahead, sometimes faster, sometimes further.

Even so, don't be tempted. You be fair. And just. Always. Don't let someone else make you a different person.

[jasoncwarner]

You can learn from anything, even the worst situations. Find that vantage point and everything becomes an opportunity for growth.

Hard in the moment though one of life’s true accelerants.

[jasoncwarner]

The unfortunate truth is most rich people are only useful for their money. But society worships money and will exalt then. Do. Not. Buy it.

There are many traps in life but assuming someone is useful because they are rich or wealthy is a deadly one.

Be the expert. Find others. Stick together.

[architgarg]

Thanks, @jasoncwarner! These are so insightful! Highly grateful that you shared your life learnings with us. Please keep adding more as they come to your mind. I can't thank you enough!!