15 Things You Can Do In Your 20s To Create The Future You Want

Twenty20 / @amyatkins

1. Be your own best friend. Trust yourself and your intuition more than you trust other people’s opinions. Hang out with yourself and do all the things that you enjoy. Time is precious and must be used wisely.

2. Reach for the stars. You were conceived and made the journey to life with a hell-a-lot of willpower and strength. Dream big and rise to the challenges of creating the life you desire and have faith in yourself to win at life.

3. Don’t settle for less than you desire. If your relationship, friendships, or job are not fulfilling you, leave. You always have the option to  leave. Do not fear hurting people with honesty. If something feels off to you, speak your mind and say how you feel.

4. Celebrate your originality. Be unique and embrace your authenticity. The world needs more people who rebel against conformity and society’s expectations of you.

5. Spend time getting to know yourself. Learn to enjoy being in your own company, so that you will never feel like you have to tolerate being surrounded by people who belittle you or drain your energy. Explore your mind and figure out your interests and talents.

6. Follow your curiosities. If you can’t figure out exactly what you want in life, try new things, open your mind and find new interests. This world has an abundance of fascinating theories, philosophies and cultural beliefs that will open your mind and enrich your soul.

7. Travel alone at least once in your 20s. Traveling alone is one of the best ways to discover what you are capable of and gives you a sense of confidence. Time out from your familiar surrounding and familiar faces helps you to see life in a new way and gives you a fresh perspective of the world.

8. Make friends with people from different cultures and countries. Meeting people who have walked a different path in life is one sure way to open your mind and develop new beliefs. It makes the world feel smaller and less divided.

9. Don’t judge a book by its cover. This goes for books, people, countries and quite possibly everything I can think of. Stereotyping is not cool, and nothing healthy grows from being judgmental. Try and experience as much as you can.

10. Be an interested person. If you want to be an interesting person that leads an interesting life, then you have got to be interested in people, subjects and topics. Explore and discover everything you hear like a child who questions every single thing. This is how we learn.

11. Talk to old people. Some of the best and most inspiring conversations I have had have been with people way older than me. They have life experience and wisdom worth a fortune. Listen to what they have to say and respect them.

12. Accept opinions. Nobody will have the same views or perceptions on life as you. Everybody is unique and we are all shaped by our experiences which develop our outlooks on life. Respect this but still hold onto what you believe.

13. Develop a habit of positive thinking. The power of positive thinking is real. I promise you! You cannot live a positive life with a negative mindset and bad attitude towards yourself and others. Practice positive affirmations every day. Develop a grateful, happy mindset and way of looking at life. Life is simply easier when you create your own happiness everyday. Negative thinking is a waste of energy and time.

14. Let go of self-limitations. There are no limits, unless you believe them to be true. Your mind simply believes what you tell it. Protect your peace of mind and let go of any thoughts that hold you back.

15. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Learn to laugh at yourself when you do something embarrassing. It’s impossible to always say and do the right things. You’re just a human. Shake it off and laugh. People will like your calm, easy going personality and laugh with you. Being fun and smiley naturally draws people to you. This is how you become a likable character. Thought Catalog Logo Mark

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