The 20 Things You Shouldn’t Take For Granted In Your 20s

Elite Daily should re-brand themselves to Your 20's Guide. Another one of their AWESOME articles that should have come earlier in my life :))

[re-blogged]

        1. Talent Only Gets You Into The Race.

Growing up, I made the mistake of thinking that talent was enough to get you to the top. Talent is not something that one is either born with or without. Talent is a person’s ability to take in information and learn. A talented athlete is able to learn how to use his or her body more efficiently than others. They learn to function within a world governed by physics more rapidly then most. With this said, a person who isn’t considered “talented” could become just as skilled or as successful as those considered “talented” if he or she put in the work.....

2. You Don’t Put In The Hours, You Don’t Get The Payoff.

If you don’t do the work, then you won’t see results. Gen-Yers often feel entitled to…well, everything. We have big egos — it’s true. Having a huge ego can be very useful as long as you understand how far your ego alone will take you. No matter who you are or how intelligent you believe yourself to be, mastery of any subject takes time and effort; there’s no shortcut.

3. Eat Junk Now And Pay For It Later.

Metabolisms slow down with age. They also slow down when you eat crap every day. Your metabolism greatly influences your life’s longevity. The better shape your metabolism is in, the longer you will be able to survive. You can eat junk food all you want as long as you realize how many years of your life you are exchanging those Big Macs for.

4. Social Media Is Available To The Public.

Every time you or your friend put up a photo or comment about how you puked your brains out last time you got bottle service at the club or about how much blow you did that had you thinking that your “Heart is going to explode! OMG! LMFAO! #YOLO #CrackWhore” — others can see it. The stuff you put up is visible to anyone and everyone. For some reason, we think that only those that we believe should see it are able to see photos of us hitting that bong, but the truth is that your prospective employer also has access. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are the future’s rap sheets.

5. Family Is Most Important.

Friends will come in and out of your life, but family is for life. If you were lucky enough to be born into a caring, loving family, then count your lucky stars and do what you can to make them feel appreciated. Not all of us have parents and siblings that treat us well and with respect. If you weren’t born into a good family, then your goal should be creating your own loving family in the future. Your family will get you through some of the most difficult times in your life; you are one another’s support group.

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Enjoy the read ;)

The 20 Things You Need To Accomplish In Your 20s

Being 20 and young is no longer a valid excuse to do what you want. Life doesn’t get any easier and it is crucial that you use this time to position yourself in order to give yourself a competitive advantage in the future. Our 30s can be very successful, or a complete failure, all depending on what we learn and how much effort we put in during our 20s. ---- Paul Hudson

Re-blogged from Elite Daily

20. Let go of the past and look forward to the future.
By the age of 29, there will be many things that you will accomplish and there will be things that you failed at. You must learn to let go of your failures and learn from them. You must not think about what you could have or should have done, but rather what you will do next. The 30s are the new 20s, so get your shit together and make something of the next decade!

19. Accept that you are an adult.
By the time that you reach 27 years of age there should be no doubt in your mind that you have reached adulthood. This is the time to accept that you are an adult and that it is time to act like one. This does not necessarily mean to tone down your crazy escapades, but it may. In your 20s you need to come to terms with being your own master and taking responsibility for your decisions and your life.  

18. Learn to maintain and keep your environment organized.
Your personal home environment very much reflects who you are as a person, who you are inside. If your surroundings are hectic, you are likely to feel inner tension. If your surroundings are neat and peaceful, your mind most likely experiences the same peace. If you want to find and maintain peace, then you must manifest your inner peace in your outer surroundings.  

17. Learn to maintain your body.
Exercise is important. And so are all the grooming tasks that a person should learn to maintain throughout the years. Looking tidy, organized and well trimmed becomes more and more important the older you become. You may not feel the need to trim those nose hairs now, but you will when you are 50. This goes for both men and women.  

16. Learn to dress well.
People judge you on how you look and how you dress. Wearing the right clothing for each occasion will make whatever you wish to accomplish a bit easier — in the very least it will only work to your benefit and not against you as would dressing poorly or inappropriately. Women need to learn how to wear dresses and walk in heels (walk, not waddle) and men should get comfortable in a suit. No matter who you are, there will be at the very least several times that you will need to dress to impress.  

15. Start to accumulate a fortune.

I don’t know about all of you, but I plan on being a billionaire. If you are to become a billionaire, you will have to become a millionaire first. Hit that first million by 30 and your first billion by 40.  

14. Learn to adapt.
We must all embrace change — the sooner the better. Change occurs constantly and unless we learn to change along with it, we will get left behind. Sticking to the ways of the past finds you living a life unfit for reality, but rather fit for a time that once was. The longer you wait to embrace change, the more difficult it will be to change your ways and habits.  

13. Outline your perfect partner.
Some believe that it’s best to leave love to chance or fate. I, on the other hand, believe that loving is a decision and not some completely random, unexplainable concept. You may not be able to find a woman that matches your dream woman 100%, but you should have a good idea of what you do want in a partner and what you don’t want — as well as how important each characteristic or lack of is to you.

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20 Things 20-Year-Olds Don't Get

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.” - Mark Twain

  re-blogged from Forbes

I started Docstoc in my 20’s, made the cover of one of those cliché “20 Under 20” lists, and today I employ an amazing group of 20-somethings. 
Call me a curmudgeon, but at 34, how I came up seems so different from what this millennial generation expects.  I made a lot of mistakes along the way, and I see this generation making their own. 
In response, here are my 20 Things 20-Year-Olds Don’t Get.

Time is Not a Limitless Commodity – I so rarely find young professionals that have a heightened sense of urgency to get to the next level.  In our 20s we think we have all the time in the world to A) figure it out and B) get what we want.  Time is the only treasure we start off with in abundance, and can never get back.  Make the most of the opportunities you have today, because there will be a time when you have no more of it.

You’re Talented, But Talent is Overrated - Congratulations, you may be the most capable, creative, knowledgeable & multi-tasking generation yet.  As my father says, “I’ll Give You a Sh-t Medal.”  Unrefined raw materials (no matter how valuable) are simply wasted potential.  There’s no prize for talent, just results.  Even the most seemingly gifted folks methodically and painfully worked their way to success.  (Tip: read “Talent is Overrated”)

We’re More Productive in the Morning – During my first 2 years at Docstoc (while I was still in my 20’s) I prided myself on staying at the office until 3am on a regular basis.  I thought I got so much work done in those hours long after everyone else was gone.  But in retrospect I got more menial, task-based items done, not the more complicated strategic planning, phone calls or meetings that needed to happen during business hours.  Now I stress an office-wide early start time because I know, for the most part, we’re more productive as a team in those early hours of the day.

Social Media is Not a Career – These job titles won’t exist in 5 years. Social media is simply a function of marketing; it helps support branding, ROI or both.  Social media is a means to get more awareness, more users or more revenue.  It’s not an end in itself.  I’d strongly caution against pegging your career trajectory solely to a social media job title.

Pick Up the Phone – Stop hiding behind your computer. Business gets done on the phone and in person.  It should be your first instinct, not last, to talk to a real person and source business opportunities.  And when the Internet goes down… stop looking so befuddled and don’t ask to go home.  Don’t be a pansy, pick up the phone.

Be the First In & Last to Leave ­– I give this advice to everyone starting a new job or still in the formative stages of their professional career.  You have more ground to make up than everyone else around you, and you do have something to prove. There’s only one sure-fire way to get ahead, and that’s to work harder than all of your peers.

Don’t Wait to Be Told What to Do – You can’t have a sense of entitlement without a sense of responsibility.  You’ll never get ahead by waiting for someone to tell you what to do.  Saying “nobody asked me to do this” is a guaranteed recipe for failure.  Err on the side of doing too much, not too little.  (Watch: Millennials in the Workplace Training Video)

Take Responsibility for Your Mistakes – You should be making lots of mistakes when you’re early on in your career.  But you shouldn’t be defensive about errors in judgment or execution.  Stop trying to justify your F-ups.  You’re only going to grow by embracing the lessons learned from your mistakes, and committing to learn from those experiences.

You Should Be Getting Your Butt Kicked – Meryl Streep in “The Devil Wears Prada” would be the most valuable boss you could possibly have.  This is the most impressionable, malleable and formative stage of your professional career.  Working for someone that demands excellence and pushes your limits every day will build the most solid foundation for your ongoing professional success.

A New Job a Year Isn’t a Good Thing ­­– 1-year stints don’t tell me that you’re so talented that you keep outgrowing your company.  It tells me that you don’t have the discipline to see your own learning curve through to completion.  It takes about 2-3 years to master any new critical skill, give yourself at least that much time before you jump ship.  Otherwise your resume reads as a series of red flags on why not to be hired.

People Matter More Than Perks – It’s so trendy to pick the company that offers the most flex time, unlimited meals, company massages, game rooms and team outings.  Those should all matter, but not as much as the character of your founders and managers. Great leaders will mentor you and will be a loyal source of employment long after you’ve left.  Make a conscious bet on the folks you’re going to work for and your commitment to them will pay off much more than those fluffy perks.

Map Effort to Your Professional Gain – You’re going to be asked to do things you don’t like to do.  Keep your eye on the prize.   Connect what you’re doing today, with where you want to be tomorrow.  That should be all the incentive you need.  If you can’t map your future success to your current responsibilities, then it’s time to find a new opportunity.

Speak Up, Not Out – We’re raising a generation of sh-t talkers.  In your workplace this is a cancer.  If you have issues with management, culture or your role & responsibilities, SPEAK UP.  Don’t take those complaints and trash-talk the company or co-workers on lunch breaks and anonymous chat boards.  If you can effectively communicate what needs to be improved, you have the ability to shape your surroundings and professional destiny.

You HAVE to Build Your Technical Chops – Adding “Proficient in Microsoft Office” at the bottom of your resume under Skills, is not going to cut it anymore.  I immediately give preference to candidates who are ninjas in: Photoshop, HTML/CSS, iOS, WordPress, Adwords, MySQL, Balsamiq, advanced Excel, Final Cut Pro – regardless of their job position.  If you plan to stay gainfully employed, you better complement that humanities degree with some applicable technical chops.

Both the Size and Quality of Your Network Matter – It’s who you know more than what you know, that gets you ahead in business.  Knowing a small group of folks very well, or a huge smattering of contacts superficially, just won’t cut it.  Meet and stay connected to lots of folks, and invest your time developing as many of those relationships as possible. (TIP: Here is my Networking Advice)

You Need At Least 3 Professional Mentors – The most guaranteed path to success is to emulate those who’ve achieved what you seek.  You should always have at least 3 people you call mentors who are where you want to be.  Their free guidance and counsel will be the most priceless gift you can receive.  (TIP:  “The Secret to Finding and Keeping Mentors”)

Pick an Idol & Act “As If” – You may not know what to do, but your professional idol does.  I often coach my employees to pick the businessperson they most admire, and act “as if.”  If you were (fill in the blank) how would he or she carry themselves, make decisions, organize his/her day, accomplish goals?  You’ve got to fake it until you make it, so it’s better to fake it as the most accomplished person you could imagine.   (Shout out to Tony Robbins for the tip)

Read More Books, Fewer Tweets/Texts – Your generation consumes information in headlines and 140 characters:  all breadth and no depth.  Creativity, thoughtfulness and thinking skills are freed when you’re forced to read a full book cover to cover.  All the keys to your future success, lay in the past experience of others.  Make sure to read a book a month  (fiction or non-fiction) and your career will blossom.

Spend 25% Less Than You Make – When your material needs meet or exceed your income, you’re sabotaging your ability to really make it big.  Don’t shackle yourself with golden handcuffs (a fancy car or an expensive apartment).  Be willing and able to take 20% less in the short term, if it could mean 200% more earning potential.  You’re nothing more than penny wise and pound-foolish if you pass up an amazing new career opportunity to keep an extra little bit of income.  No matter how much money you make, spend 25% less to support your life.  It’s a guaranteed formula to be less stressed and to always have the flexibility to pursue your dreams.

Your Reputation is Priceless, Don’t Damage It – Over time, your reputation is the most valuable currency you have in business.  It’s the invisible key that either opens or closes doors of professional opportunity.  Especially in an age where everything is forever recorded and accessible, your reputation has to be guarded like the most sacred treasure.  It’s the one item that, once lost, you can never get back.