I stole the idea for this blog post from Kai Davis. Go read his post then come back here. I turned 26 two weeks ago so this is still relevant and fresh.
1. Almost cliche, but I found this to be very true: “You can get anything in life you want if you just help enough other people get what they want.” – Zig Ziglar
2. My sleep is significantly worse after eating pizza (Thanks WakeMate).
3. The internet is full of amazing and smart people. The purpose of the internet is to connect with them.
4. I have no idea what blog post I write is going to be popular. Once a month I write something really popular. Once a month I write something moderately popular. And 28 days a month I write something popular to a few.
5. Everyone needs to learn how to sell. Either themselves or an idea. It doesn’t matter if you’re a genius if you can’t sell people on your idea.
6. Writing a book is hard.
7. Self-publishing to the Kindle store is easy.
8. Before outsourcing, learn how to do it yourself. This lesson cost me $89.
9. Reading books on the Kindle app is superior to physical books. I’m hooked on highlighting.
10. Listen to “gut” feelings. They were generally right. I knew I should have quit a job, but stayed with it because I enjoyed coworkers.
11. It’s much easier to connect with my favorite bloggers / authors than I thought.
12. Investing in human capital > investing in stocks and commodities.
13. There is no reason to sign with a book publisher. Pick yourself.
14. The client paying the least will be the most difficult to deal with.
15. Say No more often.
16. If you can’t say, “Hell Yes” and paying your mortgage doesn’t depend on it, say No.
17. Time is the most precious thing we have. Wearing a reminder helps me not forget this.
18. I can learn anything I want to, but not everything. Making a list and going one by one is the only way to get things done.
19. Creativity is a muscle. If you don’t exercise it regularly, it atrophies.
20. Good design is extremely valuable, but difficult to explain. We feel the impact of good design in the limbic brain, but the neocortex has to put the emotion into words. And it’s horrible at that.
21. Listening to a motivating talk of book for 30 minutes each day can make a big difference in attitude.
22. The Pomodoro technique is life changing. It’s so easy for me to get distracted. This helps reign me in.
23. Eating the paleo-diet, if I can stick to it, makes me feel really good.
24. Outsourcing book formatting is largely a waste of money unless you have a really elaborate book.
25. You plateau with every hobby or skill unless you step in the ring.