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Why you should take your 20's seriously

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Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#51

Post by eru »

crazygringo wrote: post #39

I "agree", but draw the exact opposite conclusions. You should take your 20's seriously... because it's the only time in your life that you aren't encumbered by building a career, having kids, etc. So you should take your 20's to do the things that you won't be able to do later. Work as a bartender, play in a band, travel the world on the cheap, teach English abroad, date the kind of people you wouldn't marry. You do…

I agree. Just:

> Learn a second language, learn to cook, learn to play music.

Yes, late is better then never. But please do not wait until your twenties for those.

Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#52

Post by ihodes »

diego wrote: post #37
cletus wrote: post #19

This is a delicate subject because one can view it as a call for those in their 20s to make the most of that time, which is a fine message, to something tantamount to ageism. While it's true that those in their 30s or older can be closed to new idea, that's not because they're "old", it's because they're people and some people are closed-minded. I find a lot of these complaints are more about the cultural and lifesty…

I completely agree with what cletus says. I'm 43 years old today. Some things just feel uninteresting because I started doing them too young. Interestingly programming is not one of them, I have been doing it for 30 years. On the other hand, I have been rock climbing for 7 years and I'm better than ever [in case you care: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olEgfe4cYuU ]. It still feels pretty new to me. I know 25-year-ol…

A bit off-topic, but that was a really nice send. What song was in the video?

Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#53

Post by peterwwillis »

gnaritas wrote: post #45
crazygringo wrote: post #39

I "agree", but draw the exact opposite conclusions. You should take your 20's seriously... because it's the only time in your life that you aren't encumbered by building a career, having kids, etc. So you should take your 20's to do the things that you won't be able to do later. Work as a bartender, play in a band, travel the world on the cheap, teach English abroad, date the kind of people you wouldn't marry. You do…

> "Your brain finishes forming in your 20′s". If that's even true (although I doubt it) It is true.

Good argument, pal.

Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#54

Post by marquis »

nsxwolf wrote: post #15
genwin wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hopefully not too many sacrifices though. Life should be about much more than creating new life. The 20s is the time to focus on yourself.

Unless you are female. There really is such thing as a biological clock. edit: Before I get downvoted, insert "... and want children"

Having children when you're young is a good idea primarily because kids are exhausting, and take up a LOT of time. Have them as young as you're able and wanting to do so: nothing to do with your gender. Men have fertility issues as they age also.

Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#55

Post by flyosity »

crazygringo wrote: post #39

I "agree", but draw the exact opposite conclusions. You should take your 20's seriously... because it's the only time in your life that you aren't encumbered by building a career, having kids, etc. So you should take your 20's to do the things that you won't be able to do later. Work as a bartender, play in a band, travel the world on the cheap, teach English abroad, date the kind of people you wouldn't marry. You do…

I'm a 29-year old male who spent his 20s building a career I love and now has a 6-month old daughter, so this quote:

> Don't waste your 20's "building a career". You've got your 30's and 40's and 50's to do that. Don't be in a rush to have kids too soon.

Doesn't really make sense to me. If you don't build a career and finances in your 20s, you either can't afford to have a kid in your early 30s or you have one and can't provide the life and opportunities they should have. And it seems you skipped over the part about women having extreme difficulties having children later than their mid-30s, or the children they have are at a higher risk of birth defects and miscarriages. Typically, a guy by himself cannot create a child without a woman, so if you're going to party in your 20s and not think about finances and a career until your 30s, and kids later than that, you should know going in that your partner will be need to be much younger than you to accomplish this.

I don't mean to ask personal questions here, but it seems apropos considering your guidance: how old are you? do you have a spouse? a son or daughter? Does your guidance match up with how you've lived your life, and are you now successfully balancing a budding career and family in your older years after living your 20s in various countries like China, France, Brazil and others?

Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#56

Post by engtech »

crazygringo wrote: post #39

I "agree", but draw the exact opposite conclusions. You should take your 20's seriously... because it's the only time in your life that you aren't encumbered by building a career, having kids, etc. So you should take your 20's to do the things that you won't be able to do later. Work as a bartender, play in a band, travel the world on the cheap, teach English abroad, date the kind of people you wouldn't marry. You do…

"Don't waste your 20's "building a career". You've got your 30's and 40's and 50's to do that."

It's hard to try to pivot in your 30s if you don't have a resume with at least some points to match your future career.

If you haven't used anything from your post-secondary degree 8 years after getting it... employers are going to notice that and assume that your degree is worthless.

I say this having seen far too many friends get stuck in the waitress/bartending life only to find out that you plateau in your 30s unless you go into the high end fine dining, sommelier, running your own place, etc.

Same thing has happened to friends in retail after they reached manager or assistant manager at a store that was supposed to be their part time job.

Re: Why you should take your 20's seriously

#58

Post by flyosity »

engtech wrote: post #48

"2) Statistically, women need to have all their children by 35. According to the author, a woman’s ability to get pregnant plummets starting in her mid-thirties. To make matters worse, the odds of a miscarriage for a woman over 35 is one in four." Our family doctor gave the odds as 3 in 5. In practical experience, I know of four friends who have miscarried at 35 (after being pregnant for over 3 months), out of about…

Just to chime in here, I personally know two 34+ year old moms who had children in the past 2 years with Down Syndrome, after having numerous miscarriages. It seems a lot of young geeky guys commenting here forget that it's not just men who have a child so if you want to have a kid in your 30s and 40s after building a career, it's going to be difficult to find a partner at that same age who has the same goals.
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