Lessons I've Learned In My First 30 Years of Life

Today I turn 30! It’s difficult to put into words how amazing this journey has been so far.

There are hundreds of experiences and relationships that have made a profound impact on my life. All of these amazing people, and beautiful places, have taught me learning lessons that I'm eternally grateful for.

It's these little snippets of life that will undoubtedly help me become a better leader and make a bigger impact throughout the next decade of life.

Last night, while I was doing some soul searching, I took the time to write down 30 learning lessons that have helped me become a better human over the past decade.

I hope these learning lessons can help you as much as they've helped me on my journey to becoming the best version of myself.

1. People don’t get what they want because they spend too much time focused on what they don’t want. 
2. Competency is not about having all the answers, it’s about having the ability to figure it out.
3. Soft skills tend to be an unquantifiable leading indicator of success and fulfillment. 
4. Success without happiness is a recipe for a downward spiral. 
5. Happiness without health is short-lived. 
6. Health comes in many forms (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, financially, socially, etc). 
7. The person you become on the journey to your goals is infinitely more important than the goal itself. 
8. Reading, writing, listening, and speaking are still the most important skills on the planet.
9. You are 1 handshake, email, text, or phone call away from everything you’ve ever wanted. 
10. The answers you need are already lying within your consciousness. Try asking yourself new questions. 
11. Reframe your problems as opportunities to grow, evolve, change, and become. 
12. Relationships are not just interpersonal. You have relationships with ideas, things, nature, your past, your present, your future, and yourself. How you “relate” is very macro. 
13. Traveling will expand your understanding of yourself and the world around you. 
14. Put your phone down every once in a while and get lost in something. You’ll enjoy it. 
15. Smiling is life’s ultimate key performance indicator. 
16. Most human problems stem from not being (or having) enough. (Not enough money, energy, love, certainty, worthiness, etc). Ironically, on the flip side, other problems stem from being “too much.” This is a great reminder that life is all about BALANCE. 
17. Expectation gaps and communication gaps are the main reasons relationships fail. 
18. If we want success, we have to be ready to take the next step - RIGHT NOW.
19. The only thing that’s constant on this planet is change. 
20. All humans really want are desirable emotions and feelings. 
21. Focus on solving a specific problem for a specific type of person to find growth and fulfillment in your career. 
22. The best solutions are simple and easy to understand. 
23. Energy vampires are everywhere. Become aware of who is filling you up and who is draining you out. 
24. The compound effect (aggregation of marginal gains) is what creates an overnight success. 
25. Take the time to get to understand people who are completely different from you. This is a straightforward path to developing empathy. 
26. Intentions are what separates good people from bad people. 
27. Regardless of your current circumstances, better understanding yourself and the world around you can unlock new possibilities that weren’t previously possible.
28. Life is a game of acquiring, managing and deploying energy (and resources). 
29. Aligned intentions are a highway to manifesting. This means that who you are, what you want, and what you do about it are all heading in the same direction. 
30. LinkedIn can open doors that never would have been opened otherwise. 

Which lesson from above was your favorite? What lessons have you learned that every human should know? 

Let me know in the comments below.