Things to start doing in your 20s so you don't live in regret later

Things to start doing in your 20s so you don't live in regret later 

I wrote this for myself as a guide to ensure that I follow the steps below. But then it struck me that I have peers who are also struggling and confused about how and what to invest in while young, in order to ensure financial security at old age.

So I decided to share. Below are some ideal investments to consider when you are in your 20s and 30s.

Invest in Yourself

Reduce watching TV/News: The news doesn’t change — government borrowing, election manipulation, killings, wars, underperforming economy, celebrity gossip, and the list goes on and on. All these do not make me knowledgeable.

When you reduce TV and watching news, you become less anxious and less stressed.

Cut down on social media: The average person touches his phone more than 100 times a day, due to addiction to Whatsapp messages, facebook, Twitter, etc. Half of that time would have been better spent reading books, creating art or something productive.

• Read fiction and non-fiction every day.
• Reduce alcohol and limit sugar.
• Eat twice a day.
• Avoid gossip.
• Sleep an hour earlier and wake up an hour earlier.

A salary is the first major source of savings and investments, so you must nurture that source properly to help jumpstart you into other avenues for enriching yourself.

Whatever career you are in, develop more skills, and take more courses. Some of these courses are offered online at cheap prices. If you are an employee, consider taking a professional certification exam.

Google people at the pinnacle of your field and research what made them get to the top. It could be their negotiation, management, psychological, or impeccable writing skills.

Investing in yourself is the most important decision you will make, as the more skills you have, the more ideas you have to aid creativity, and end up as money making and/or value adding machines.

Two quotes by Ray Dalio have stuck with me:

1. “Do not let your income rise faster than your productivity, because you’ll eventually become uncompetitive.”
2. “Do all that you can to raise your productivity, because in the long run, that’s what matters the most.”

To be honest, sometimes I break the rules listed above, but I notice that I have been most productive when I follow these rules.

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