For the purpose of this question, the target age range is 20-30. Asking because I feel like I’m wasting my youth.
Get away from tech on a regular basis. Allow yourself to be in your own thoughts occasionally. I think constantly being tied to phones and the internet is killing creativity because we never have those day dreaming moments that lead to inspiration.
Don’t spend huge chunks of your life on video games. They are a fun distraction but at the end of the day is it just bits on some server that could be shut down at any moment. Get off of the dopamine treadmill.
Get a service industry job to learn a healthy sense of misanthropy
I don’t recommend it, but it can definitely give you a perspective of the kind of shit people have to put up with
If you need to learn one rule it is “Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you”
Learn how to be happy alone. Simple!
Really though, if you figure this out, a lot of other things click into place. I used to think it was impossible. Just words miserable people said to make themselves feel less lonely.
Okay, sometimes it’s still that, but I’ve come to enjoy being able to focus on whatever I want to focus on without the distractions, drama, and/or gnawing desperation.
Honestly go out and figure out your sexual preferences by exploring and experimenting. I find this happens a lot. A young couple get together in early twenties. Then they slowly drift apart because y’all honestly didn’t make a solid decision on who to settle down with. It causes so much pain, heartbreak and financial stress.
Just be honest. Hit the apps and let everyone know what you’re doing. Just meet people. If they are weird no big deal meet the next person. And you will probably fall in love but you have to be strong and make sure to only give that heart out to the one you know will take care of it.
When you get that feeling about a person but you know they aren’t the one identify why you like them. You will probably form a pretty solid idea of your preferences this way. At least I did.
Put money aside for the future.
As a virgin, If you had an opportunity to get laid (safely) with someone you at the very least don’t have negative feelings and you consider it more than average, do it. Otherwise you could regret passing in.
Protect your hearing. Listen to loud music in moderation and use earplugs in loud environments.
Most practical advice I’ve seen in this thread. For anyone who wants to protect their hearing at a concert without making the music sound muffled, check out these flat frequency ear plugs:
https://www.etymotic.com/product/etyplugs-high-fidelity-earplugs/
Those are great but I recently switched to these. They are a little more expensive but they come with three different filters for different decibel levels.
Please wear them at shows. Coming home with your ears feeling like you are underwater and ringing is a sign you’ve damaged them. I don’t know why they insist on making shows so damn loud.
I’ve always had the anti-neighbour style setup. Much less harmful to your ears than headphones
Vote.
I’d also add participate in local politics. There’s no law saying a 20 year old can’t be any elected official but president.
There is, it’s the constitution. You can’t be a member of the House without being 25 or a senator without being 30.
However there exist countries with own constitutions outside of the US
Even in the US, state-level representation hardly counts as local. Neighborhoods, towns, counties, etc. all have people representing them.
It’s cool to care about and build up your community.
Wear. Sunscreen.
If you absolutely hate sunscreen for sensory reasons, check out UPF jackets and other clothing. I live in a place where the UV is 11+ every day in the summer and it works great without being suffocatingly hot. Being able to just throw a jacket on and go outside without worrying about sunburn is pretty great.
Woman in tropical countries cover themselves in very light long sleaved tops. I bought one in Vietnam for my wife.
Wear a wide brimmed hat too. You’ll look jaunty while protecting your head.
What is the material like, does it get hot inside? Is there a brand that you recommend?
The one I have is from REI and made of modal (similar to rayon, made from wood pulp), it’s the only one I’ve used but it feels very nice, soft, and lightweight. I don’t ever feel like I’d be better off not wearing it if I’m in direct sunlight, and sweat dries from it fairly quickly. I’ve been hot while wearing it but not any hotter than I would have been standing in the sun to begin with, you know? I’ve also never had it fail and result in a burn, and my dermatologist was enthusiastic about it when I brought up that I’d been using that instead of sunscreen.
The main reason I went with that brand was because I couldn’t find any non-polyester options anywhere else. There’s nothing wrong with them functionally, I just try to avoid polyester in general.
Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life.
The most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives,
some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t.
Oh yeah this one. Plus, wear a hat. My hairstylist found skin cancer on my scalp a year or two ago and now I have a bald spot where they removed it because scalp skin doesn’t have a whole lot of excess to close a wound. So cute. Thankfully, I can hide it, but it pretty much requires me to wear my hair up every day.
Eta: I feel like it should go without saying, but maybe doesn’t, that I was incredibly lucky that it was basal cell, not melanoma. A big scar is one of the best outcomes I could’ve had.
My wife got it on top of her foot from wearing sandals for decades
True. Nothing else in your skincare routine matters if you’re not wearing sunscreen.
Get sunscreen that you don’t mind applying in the morning. I love this one: www.amazon.com/dp/B09DGPRM22
Get sunscreen that you don’t mind applying in the morning.
Does it last all day or were you just suggesting morning because some people forget it until later?
Realistically you should reapply, but in the morning is a good start to the routine
I recommend face moisturizer with SPF for all genders. Put it on every morning. Start young.
I haven’t watched that in years! I’d almost forgotten how much young me liked it and now older me sees more wisdom in it.
Why?
Skin cancer is a bitch.
Do you mean wear sunscreen every day, or just when needed?
Don’t fry yourself or use tanning beds. Getting your skin scraped down to a weeping ulcer is not fun and even that is much better than what you could get.
Floss and make regular dentist visits, prioritize fitness and make it a habit for the rest of your life, and don’t allow negative people in your life
20 years ago I would have said invest regularly in an index fund.
Today I think you should learn all you can about DIY water filtration and growing edible mushrooms in caves.
Have to invest points in radiation resistance.
Learn to cook!
It’s great fun if you can get into it, it fulfills one of your basic needs in a much more fun and satisfying way, and it can be a good and attractive quality in a future partner and / or fun to do with them.
So many people I know who after college ended up living on crap. At best they only knew how to boil pasta. I got a cookbook on my favorite cuisine at the time and started trying all sorts of recipes when I first lived on my own. I tell my wife “If you can follow instructions you can cook” and she said “I hate following instructions.” lol
Live alone and single at some point in your life.
It’s shocking how many people never learn to just be themselves, by themselves. And I don’t mean for a month or two. Get to know yourself before you settle in together with somebody else.
In THIS economy?!
That’s a good point. We’re going to have a lot of really stunted people who never got the chance to live alone and learn about themselves because nobody can afford rent anymore.
Enjoy nature before it gets clearcut for money
