What young people should do

Yesterday a friend shared with me a short article chalk full of the most amazing advice for young people. I was so impressed that I just have to pass it along to you. If you’re not young enough to take advantage of this I challenge you to share it with your kids or some young people you know. It was written by Leo Babauta and is entitled: “A Guide for Young People: What to Do With Your Life.“

Be sure to read the article. I promise it will be worth your time. To help use these principles going forward, I put together a quick reference outlined below. This will allow you (or your young friend) to check progress and refresh your memory. The only change I would make to the article, would be to learn about and invest in dividend growth stocks which provide higher income and a better overall return then index funds. Here is a quick reference list:

• Focus on what you can do right now that will be good no matter what the future brings
  • Make stuff, build stuff
  • Learn skills
  • Go on adventures
  • Make friends

• Learn to be good with discomfort
  • The best things are hard and difficult, if you avoid them you’ll miss out
  • If you get good at discomfort you can do anything
  • Start small, when you start avoiding discomfort, push yourself a little more

• Learn to be good with uncertainty
  • If you’re afraid of uncertainty you’ll skip hard things, projects, opportunities
  • If you’re good at discomfort and uncertainty you can do all kinds of things
  • You’ll be ready when opportunities arise

• Overcome distraction and procrastination
  • Opportunities fail if you waste time because of social media, TV, video games
  • Distraction & procrastination are just ways of avoiding discomfort

• Learn about your mind
  • Don’t let fear control you
  • Learn how your mind works: Best ways include meditation and blogging

• Make some money
  • Figure out why you are worthy of someone hiring you
  • Save an emergency fund, then
  • Start investing

• Build something small
  • Don’t fritter away time on TV, video games, reading news, etc
  • Starting small build something by working on it everyday
  • Add new skills

• Become trustworthy
  • Build a positive reputation
  • Show up on time, do your best at every task, be honest, admit mistakes but fix them, meet deadlines, be a good person
  • If you do, people will recommend you, which is the best way to get a job or investor

All the best!

Filed in: Investment Principles