Things it took me too long to learn. Please add to the list.

I am so glad you started this thread because what I learned this week is from another thread. Well, I've been asking several people IRL, and they have been giving me similar answers. But student council actually said it well in another thread. I told my twenty year old this morning and he looked at me blankly but I do wish I'd been told at some point in my life. And of course it isn't a rule but an observation.

Over ten or twenty years, the stock market will average approximately 8% gains per year not including brokerage fees, but there will be years when the stock market declines 20% or more. So plan accordingly.


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If a person you know puts something on the internet, don't assume they wanted it publicized or even mentioned briefly. It could be that they think they are anonymous on the internet even if they used their real name.



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Don't make promises if you can't remember the promises you make.


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Stay in touch with family members who are older, even if it is only to say hello for five minutes on the phone. Call your parents once a week.

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Maintenance is its own expense.

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Keep up with the changes in your field even if you have clients and projects that don't demand that of you.

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Exercise every day.

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Don't give advice unless asked. (So glad you asked.)

"Don't make promises if you can't remember the promises you make."

I love this one.

Learning how to tap dance brings me great joy.

I never should have listened to my father who felt failure was never an option.

People can change during 42 years of marriage.

Measure twice, cut once

pick your issues well, said otherwise don't get bound up with the little stuff

its easier to be generous of heart

its OK to ask for help, asking for help makes others feel needed and appreciated
try to have at least one accomplishment a day

owing money creates strife so think through what you want vs need

Time doesn't necessarily solve problems between people, but a cooling off period can allow everyone to see what matters most.

When raising children, try to figure out what problems you can address and which will be solved by inevitable maturity. Don't waste time on the latter.

I have flowers in the house everyday, and I set a pretty table, arrange stuff just so. I have only just decided to admit this is important and worthwhile (TO ME, not to all), and acknowledge that I love doing it -- and that's enough reason to do it.
ETA: What I mean for others here is: acknowledge the little things that matter to you personally, embrace them, and don't apologize for them.

Agree on scissors everywhere.

Also...buy kid clothes at Goodwill. Really, they don't care and it'll save stress when they lose them, etc.

Also this: when someone tells you of their troubles, you don't have to solve it. It's enough to say I'm sorry and hold their hand.

Sometimes peace is more important than being right.

My father-in-law often used to repeat the old adage:

"What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger."


He was wrong. I've learned that:

"What doesn't kill you, can still really fcuk-you-up."

Taking a drive/walk with one child at a time is priceless. Your own child, that is.

Took me 70 years to learn that peace comes from within.

Cats make great, low maintenance pets. Relaxation can come from watching them sleep.

I appreciate fifty year professional nursing career was very good for me, and also, very persoannly fulfilling and rewarding too!

I so appreciate my adult kids now, in their late 30's and early 40's, guess I did a decent job raising them, although there were many times when they were teens, I just wasn't sure.

Don't run up the credit cards, ever!

I'm still learning to keep my mouth shut until I'm absolutely SURE I know what we are talking about. *sigh*

My native New Yorker friend says, "don't run for the subway; there will always be another train." This can be extrapolated to keep from rushing in many other areas.

Of course, the corollary is, "if you see something that needs doing, do it now."

If you want others, especially children, to listen to you - DO NOT raise your voice, instead lower it and speak slowly.

In addition to not feeling that you must solve other people problems when they tell you about them, you might also hold their hand and say, "I trust you to figure this out."

I watched my male friend hug my son and learned that it's great to hug my son's buddies. They expect it when they come in my house and I expect it from them. They're in their twenties. My daughter's girlfriends, not so much...

All the nerdy things I did in my 20s, which I gave up for no real reason in my 30s, were fun and creative and I can't wait to get into doing them all again.

PeggyC said:

Write down your parents' stories before they lose the ability to tell them to you.


Thanks for this. Dad was telling the best childhood stories at Christmas. It's time to start writing them down.

I will add: floss daily, and...

"The first time someone shows you who they are, believe them." Maya Angelou




Say sorry and say I love you as many times as necessary - in person, preferably.

Books are great company.

Trying to change the people you love is harder than learning to accept and live with their flaws. Also, I have many flaws too.

+2 for Le Creuset!

Change is good.

Happiness comes from within and is almost completely unrelated to everything else that you have (or don't have) in your life.

Love this thread!

The Dalai Lama: “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

jeffl said:

Brussel sprouts are delicious.

Never buy cheap tools.

Scissors are cheap. You should have a pair in almost every room of the house. Similar situation with tape measures and screw drivers.

Le Creuset

Good knives don't have to be expensive, but they have to be good.

Christina Aguilera has an unbelievable voice.

Why do I speed? Where am I rushing to?

If I put something off, I'll never do it.

I should have paid much better attention in history and geography classes.

Okay. If this thread lives, I'm sure I'll think of more. If Soul69 writes "chirp, chirp," I'll know it's dead.

So how about yours?


You pretty much nailed it for me. I would add that:

If I don't exercise almost daily, I'm miserable to be around

I should have paid much better attention in Spanish class. I wish I was fluent.

I have a very intense attachment (ha ha) to my vacuum and this makes my family nuts.

I can't have chocolate within a very small radius of me or I'm doomed to eat it all.

Sunscreen is very, very important (said to my 16 year-old, baking in baby oil self)

All those heartbreaks from relationships that ended really DID make me a better person. Mostly.

Help others. You never know when you might be the one needing help.

Have compassion.

While money is nice, real success is measured in many other ways.

Where you go to college is not always a measure of how successful you'll be. You need to learn to work hard and be flexible in life.


its OK to speed...some... on the highway (driving fast is fun)

you can (almost) never go see your elderly parents enough

your kids are such a treasure, support their dreams no matter what

if you fall in love, don't hold back

Losing someone, especially forever, can really hurt, but it's better than not knowing them in the first place.

Extrapolated from jeffl's list: Use the right tool always. You're wasting your time trying to "make do."

One for MOL: If someone disagrees with you and tries to pick a fight, let them win. You're not really losing anything.

Expensive vodka is wasted on me. Expensive scotch is not. And I can be wasted on both of them.

39dollarglasses.com is the last place I ever need to buy prescription glasses.

PeggyC said:

Write down your parents' stories before they lose the ability to tell them to you.
This x 1,000,000!!!


It is not alway about me.

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