Skip to content

Posted over 4 years ago

9 Things I Wish I Had Known When I Was 20

Pay Yourself First

I realize now that you should always pay yourself first and foremost. By this, I mean I wish I'd known to invest my money from an earlier age. Putting 10% of your income away for future endeavors ensures that you're creating provisions for your own health, education and future. I used to shy away from this and my excuse was my low income - but this should not be an obstacle, it just means you have to keep a strict budget, limit your spending and work extra hard to increase your income and subsequent savings.

Don't Spend What You Haven't Yet Earned

I think we are all guilty of spending with our future income in mind - we will convince ourselves we can afford something because we are expecting to receive enough money to cover it. This does not help you towards securing financial security.

Live Within Your Means

When I initially began to analyze my financial situation, I looked through my outgoings in the previous few months and saw that a lot of my spending was frivolous and often driven by impulsiveness and emotion. For example, I was spending quite a bit of money on dining out, as well as buying takeaway lunches during my breaks at work because I was too lazy to prepare a much cheaper lunch for myself at home. I was buying new clothes each month and all the latest must-haves just as a means of 'fitting in' and creating a certain image for myself.

Have as Many Sources of Income as You Can

I read the book 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' and my outlook on my finances completely changed. I realized the importance of having a good knowledge of investment and taxes and any general financial management and began to look for extra sources of income. Some of the most common forms of extra income include interest from investments, capital gains, working overtime and improving your skills and abilities as a means to increase your hourly rate at work.

Time is Your Biggest Asset

I reflected upon my habits and realized that I had wasted a lot of my own precious time. Hours were spent watching cricket, or mind-numbing TV, gossiping with friends, scrolling through social media - and quite frankly, this realization made me feel quite ashamed. Had I spent just 10% of that time on my own development and learning new skills, my career would have advanced sooner and my income would have been a lot more comfortable for me. Making the most of your time is one of the most important factors in success - I now devote at least one hour a day to work on my goals and progress with certain plans I have made. I believe that success is founded on discipline and focus.

Have a More 'Can Do' Approach to Things

I always used to have the mentality that certain things are just 'not possible' or 'cannot be done' - but I began to think differently, and when presented with a challenge, I now ask myself 'How can I make this possible? How can it be done?' - this approach challenges me and inspires me to find new ways of achieving my goals. Take this as an example - I would previously have said 'I cannot afford a 4-bed house'; I now ask 'What do I need to do to enable me to buy a 4-bed house?

Society Is What You Make of It

Society can be an asset, a liability, or a combination of the two. It all depends on what you choose it to be. When I was facing challenges in my personal life, I found that society was not supportive - many people chose to gossip about my circumstances, some offered advice that I never asked for, while others made demeaning comments. However, quite a few people did extend their support to me in whichever way they could. There are people all around us, some have things to offer, others do not - it is up to us to pick and choose what we require from society.

Never Be Afraid to Fail

My response to failure, and the time it takes for me to respond, both determine my overall success. Learning from your failures at a good pace will always push you one step closer to where you need to be. I found that when I became emotional about a failure, I did not make any progress towards my goal and became hung up about it. I now try to quickly recover from my mistakes, and I understand that I can make good and bad decisions in one day; not all of my investments are successful, but my failures have taught me to keep the risks low so that any failed venture does not drastically disrupt my progress or hinder my success.

Confront Your Fears One At A Time

A Russian colleague of mine introduced me to a technique whereby I learned to address my fears and overcome them. She advised me to compile a list of my worst fears, and begin working on the biggest one for at least a month. I had a similar technique myself but my focus was all put into the 'lesser' fear, but since I started taking her advice, things have improved for me in life and I am feeling good about myself. My most notable fear was always driving - I was convinced that I would never be able to drive a car and the thought would make me anxious. But after several hours of hard work and multiple failed attempts to pass the exam, I found a hope in myself that kept me going and made me work harder - I eventually passed my test and I now drive comfortably. It is my choice to address my fears - I could choose not to, and allow them to continue to dictate to how I live my life, or I could address them and overcome then, all in the name of my own success.


Comments (4)

  1. I love it all, especially the suggestion from your friend about confronting your fears one at a time, starting with the biggest.


  2. Great article for young people!


  3. That was nice buddy but once the moments cherished can’t be evaluated with value.


  4. Very nice article on saving/making money with simple and practical approaches. Living within means is the key. If one has bigger dreams plan, work hard and smart, review and make changes if needed. Repeat these steps. It could be two years or 10 years it depends on the goal and commitment. But no shortcuts for success.

    Thank you Atchut for the nice article