30 Lessons I learned before 30

You’ll get another chance at your dreams, you’ll get another chance at love, at friendship, at your career. Every door that you are worried about, it is not your last opportunity for it to open. I can’t tell you how many things in my early 20s that I thought I lost (school, dreams, passions) that seemed to just show up years later. If you are feeling too much resistance towards something in your life, give it time and space. It’ll happen. But it isn’t for free. Which brings me to my second point

It is very easy to numb yourself and become apathetic to life, and just let the days go by. But remember, the degree in which you numb yourself is the degree in which you stay stagnant. You’ll stay in a cycle. Let yourself feel it.

It is easy to say you are patient when its summer, but what happens when it starts to Fall?

This life is already difficult as it is. You don’t need to make it harder by being your worst critic. Just give yourself grace and be your own cheerleader. There’s a difference between taking accountability and shaming yourself.

Oh my gosh. I wish I could yell this to younger self. Stop waiting for people to change, and stop telling people what you expect from them. People know intrinsically when they are doing you wrong, even when they act clueless.

You cannot avoid the timing of your life. It doesn’t matter if you run yourself to the ground, the door will open at a set time. Pace yourself, sleep at a good time, and have a good diet.

You can’t have any reward without the pain

I was listening to a lecture and the sheikh said, “you will find yourself in the Quran.”

It is better to leave space for the right people than to feel hopeless with the wrong ones

Stuck on what you want to do in life? Go backwards. I believe in the invisible string theory for all my interests. Reflect on what you liked to do as a child, what your favourite subject was at school, and the type of people you admire.

These two words are irreplaceable. There is literally no other solution to hardships except these two things

I wish i learned this earlier. Make it a habit

Anytime you want. It’s free.

Reject individualism, it creates more problems than it solves

I am so thankful for the past versions of me for persevering through the storms. I am seeing the fruits of it now.

You might think you are taking the easy way out by giving up on your dreams and going down the path of least resistance. The old Kanye once said, “for me, giving up is way harder than trying.” The way that the easy way out weighs down on your soul, to me, is not worth it. Its much easier to face the person in the mirror and ask the hard questions, to get back up and try again.

I don’t believe a single effort goes to waste. Eventually it will appear somewhere

The best thing to do for yourself

You are who you hang out with. That is your ceiling, even if you think you are different

If you want to conquer the world, you have to know yourself, your family, and your community

Expect a lot from yourself, not from others.

Scientists stress test their most beloved ideas first.

you can’t control what happens in your life but you can work on the area around it.

This one took my a while to understand. When people say “just be you” it isn’t just some declaration of self-love, but when you are truly yourself you are making a signal to the right people and opportunities for yourself. They will start to come to you! Stop hiding the things you find weird about yourself

Why are you here?

This is something I learned in my early 20s. I use to think I was such a laid back person that I didn’t have emotions, turns out I didn’t understand how emotions show up. For example, Fear doesn’t always show up as being afraid, sometimes it shows up as giving up, constantly quitting, or shutting down people

When going towards your dreams, you’ll never feel like you are doing it right. Keep going anyways

Life has a funny way of coming back and slapping you in the face with your own hand. I have learned enough lessons to know that I don’t know anything. The lessons will never stop coming.

Phew. I wish I learned this earlier. Ego is a tool that the more you use, the more it corrupts you. It is not your friend. Everyone has moments in their lives that are suppose to serve as an ego death. Some people double down, continuing to using their ego as a shield to protect them. It errodes your soul.

Sometimes, in order to be responsible we are constantly thinking of what could go wrong. Let yourself have space for the positive, and celebrate when it does go well. Grattitude.