Friday OT #2 - To A Younger Me

[isukendall]

Interesting thread considering the decision I have to make right now:

Accept a salary position at 40 hours a week but 20% less pay or continue a high-stress 50 hour a week commission job. 29 years old, married with no kids.

20% less pay for 20% less time. What would be the percentage less stress?

On the one hand, working hard when you're young is easier, and if you sock the money away you will be better off in the long run. That said, if your stress levels will be reduced considerably that's worth a lot.

 

[chadly82]

Go to a trade school, then after years of experience start your own business. At age 18 be smart about money now that you're on your own and never stop. Always be a gentleman...

 

[cowgirl836]

Interesting thread considering the decision I have to make right now:

Accept a salary position at 40 hours a week but 20% less pay or continue a high-stress 50 hour a week commission job. 29 years old, married with no kids.

what's the per hour pay? If the 50 hour one doesn't pay 25% more, your hourly pay is down. i get that's it's salary and the hours may bounce but still a good baseline. Your free time has value to you, presumably. What's the career trajectory for both? What's your enjoyment potential for both?

 

[VeloClone]

No matter how easy high school is, learn good study habits. College will be a lot easier (and more productive) if you develop those habits before you get there.

 

[harimad]

I heard this idea on the radio this morning - what advice would you give to your younger self?

Don't just accept what you're told. Question things.

Edit: oh, and it isn't that you don't workout enough. It's that you eat too damn much.

 

[CycloneErik]

It would be more of a blog entry than a message board post.
The summary:
1. Learn who to trust.
2. Don't overcommit to responsibilities that won't pay off in the long term.
3. See #1 again.
4. See #1 again. It's important.
5. Learn nutrition then, even though I didn't need to know it yet.
6. See #1 again.

 

[VeloClone]

High school is easy to just get by, college is not. Learn how to study before college

I just got around to reading the rest of the thread and see you beat me to the punch.

 

[cyclones500]

Interesting to read the responses so far. Love the topic, something I've contemplated many times, but I always get hung-up — which of younger self am I contacting? Depending on the timeline, I could choose general life-planning advice or talking my younger self into or out of a specific decision.

Based on that, I guess if I touched base with a random past-self, I'd tell him, "Don't overanalyze everything!"

 

[cyhiphopp]

In school and sports - try harder. School was always easy and I didn't have to put in any effort to succeed. Sports were hard, but I could have enjoyed it more if I put in more effort.

In relationships - don't take things too seriously until at LEAST college. High school relationships rarely work out. You don't even know who YOU are much less who you want to spend the rest of your life with. College you can get a bit more serious, but take your time before jumping in feet first.

In social life - don't be afraid to be myself. I was pretty introverted for a long time. I finally made some friends for life in college and figured out who I was and I am much more outgoing now.

 

[SpokaneCY]

I wish I knew what I knew at 18

I wish I knew what I THOUGHT I knew when I was 18!

 

[SpokaneCY]

Interesting thread considering the decision I have to make right now:

Accept a salary position at 40 hours a week but 20% less pay or continue a high-stress 50 hour a week commission job. 29 years old, married with no kids.

If you are currently losing your hair, take the less stress job.

Speaking as a guy with a retirement date potentially measured in HOURS, the added stress (depending of course how you deal with it) wreaks havoc on your soon-to-be middle-aged body and mind.

Chasing dollars over other more important things (that are never important until way too late) might not be the smart play.

 

[MeanDean]

1. To 10 year old me. Follow the neighbor kid out of the timber. He made it home. (I and my younger brother got lost and found about 3 AM.) Would have saved a TON of kid embarrassment.

2. Write the guy the bad check for the stock copy of My Bonnie/The Saints on Decca, and tell him to hold it for a week. Then get a signature loan to cover it. Instead of waiting 4 days, calling him and finding out it was sold.

 

[Ms3r4ISU]

High school and early college self:
Write more poetry.
Don't burn your diary pages. Just don't.
Stop agonizing over things you can't control so you won't be a frustrated, grumpy, anxious grandma one day with no good reason most of the time.
Beer is okay, a lot of it in a short time is not.
You really will start to like wine.
Save more money than you think you should.
Write and send more thank you and appreciation notes. No can can read them in your head.

 

[DurangoCy]

Someone who lies to you about things that matter is not worth a second more of your time.

Also, don't trust that fart on 01/27/2011 when you're out skiing with your friends.

 

[Doc]

I'd probably tell younger self to be less cynical and pessimistic, and that I shouldn't have a rule against dating coworkers .

 

[RING4CY]

Eat a salad.

 

[cyrocksmypants]

Don’t do that one thing you know you shouldn’t do, dumbass.

 

[mb7299]

Realize your an introvert and chasing jobs that burn you out very fast is a waste of time and a tremendous amount of money. Choosing to be happy with who and what you are instead of chasing perfection is happiness.

 

[madguy30]

No matter how easy high school is, learn good study habits. College will be a lot easier (and more productive) if you develop those habits before you get there.

Geez I remember my freshman year and how much better other people were at digging into content from gen ed classes we shared.

Much of it was my own fault, but these guys weren't exactly bookworms--they just had good habits and I really think their high school had better programs for support iirc.

 

[madguy30]

Realize your an introvert and chasing jobs that burn you out very fast is a waste of time and a tremendous amount of money. Choosing to be happy with who and what you are instead of chasing perfection is happiness.

Have you read The Subtle Art of not Giving a F*ck? I'm starting it now and it's right along these lines that it's OK to be content with what you do well and NOT be great at lots of other things.