I'm tons older. You're fine. Throw "should" out the window. There are no rules and nothing is ever finished. Do *whatever you want* and put nothing off. Rock & roll!
If you suffer from the “too many lives to live, too little time” problem, I recommend reading Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman, or listening to the podcast he did with Sam Harris.
i was going to suggest the same book -- it’s the only piece of literature in its genre i’ve read that doesn’t feel like self-help, despite the fact that it’s classified as a self-help book. there are some issues i have with it, but i’m sure you’ll notice them yourself. either way, you should 100% read it!
Being in my 30s and having spoken with loads of friends about their 20s, I think the recurring thing I've heard from everyone is: the main thing people regret are the things they wanted to do, but didn't. It's remarkably consistent. Hardly anybody regrets doing something they wanted to do, even if the outcome turned out bad. Sometimes they regret doing a thing because of social pressure etc, but never a thing they wanted to do. And I find that that's true for me too. I hope our successors can learn from our mistakes! 😅
regret always hurts more than going out on a limb/facing the fear! Absolutely, and I think we have so much landscape to face our 'what if's' now that it's more important than ever to, as you say, doing something they want to do
Wow, I love this week’s quote of the week. Our “teeth” may eventually go but they also decay over time so this way of thinking about your vitality and ambition is so valuable. Thanks for sharing.
"I am 20 something in a big city. Just reckless enough for novelty, just pragmatic enough to grow roots. I am stretching toward something real, true, beautiful. So close I can almost touch it. My dreams are growing larger by the minute. I can’t see the future but I trust in it anyways." THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU so accurate
hii i came from your tweet about this :)) this read is so timely for me as i am stuck lately about this drowning feeling on whether i am making a progress with my life. this passage reminds me of the midnight library!! “too many lives to live, too little time” i hope that ill learn to stop grieving about my past choices and where it led as im currently struggling on how to make peace with that. anyway, thank you for your essay!! such a beautiful one :)))
Thank you for sharing this, Nicole. I've been thinking a lot about moving out of my current city, but I have been really afraid of what would come. My friend just shared an open apartment in her building in my dream city. This was the exact sign that I needed.
!!! wow I hope it works out for you - I really liked bliss montage (it is very fantasy like tbh so not for everyone but I really enjoyed the first short story)
I'm tons older. You're fine. Throw "should" out the window. There are no rules and nothing is ever finished. Do *whatever you want* and put nothing off. Rock & roll!
If you suffer from the “too many lives to live, too little time” problem, I recommend reading Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman, or listening to the podcast he did with Sam Harris.
i was going to suggest the same book -- it’s the only piece of literature in its genre i’ve read that doesn’t feel like self-help, despite the fact that it’s classified as a self-help book. there are some issues i have with it, but i’m sure you’ll notice them yourself. either way, you should 100% read it!
Being in my 30s and having spoken with loads of friends about their 20s, I think the recurring thing I've heard from everyone is: the main thing people regret are the things they wanted to do, but didn't. It's remarkably consistent. Hardly anybody regrets doing something they wanted to do, even if the outcome turned out bad. Sometimes they regret doing a thing because of social pressure etc, but never a thing they wanted to do. And I find that that's true for me too. I hope our successors can learn from our mistakes! 😅
regret always hurts more than going out on a limb/facing the fear! Absolutely, and I think we have so much landscape to face our 'what if's' now that it's more important than ever to, as you say, doing something they want to do
Wow, I love this week’s quote of the week. Our “teeth” may eventually go but they also decay over time so this way of thinking about your vitality and ambition is so valuable. Thanks for sharing.
Oh the perennial existential crisis of being in one's 20s...
I only come on this app to read you. Whenever I feel lost, overwhelmed or jaded I come here to breathe again! Thank you!
"I am 20 something in a big city. Just reckless enough for novelty, just pragmatic enough to grow roots. I am stretching toward something real, true, beautiful. So close I can almost touch it. My dreams are growing larger by the minute. I can’t see the future but I trust in it anyways." THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU so accurate
Thank you so much for writing this <3
hii i came from your tweet about this :)) this read is so timely for me as i am stuck lately about this drowning feeling on whether i am making a progress with my life. this passage reminds me of the midnight library!! “too many lives to live, too little time” i hope that ill learn to stop grieving about my past choices and where it led as im currently struggling on how to make peace with that. anyway, thank you for your essay!! such a beautiful one :)))
thank you!
hope you've gotten past whatever struggles you were facing at the time!
every choice not only opens new possibilities, but it also closes others.
this is wonderful! thank you for writing this, nicole!
thank you!! :D
Thank you for sharing this, Nicole. I've been thinking a lot about moving out of my current city, but I have been really afraid of what would come. My friend just shared an open apartment in her building in my dream city. This was the exact sign that I needed.
PS. how did you like bliss montage?
!!! wow I hope it works out for you - I really liked bliss montage (it is very fantasy like tbh so not for everyone but I really enjoyed the first short story)
short, beautiful, and incisive as always. thank you for the nudge for reflection :)