[Dr. Howard]

I read through all of the good advice on here, good idea by the OP asking the question. My only addition is this:

Start to travel, but don't travel on 'vacation' or as a 'tourist' or backpacker. Travel for work, travel as a volunteer for a charity, missionary, military, etc. The travel costs you less and you get to see the 'real' parts of the world.

I started it late in life but it quickly made me humble, built stories that made it a breeze to ramble/get laid, gave me perspective on not taking my health for granted and how easy it is to just start over. No one in Medellin knows what your past achievements or failures are, you can define that all for them by emphasizing the parts you want.

[birdie num num]

When I was young and dealing with a bitch girlfriend, my dad told me that "Women are like streetcars. You miss one and there will be another in 10 minutes." He was right. Don't get too hung up on one woman or worry about being blown out during an approach.

[iknowexactly]

(08-13-2012 10:55 PM)Giovonny Wrote:  

I would focus on long term financial security and eliminating all of your fears and weaknesses.

Making money doing something you enjoy is nice. It sucks going to work everyday if you hate what you are doing.

I'm with Gio at high level. I'm even older so I can offer this general lifespan advice:
Try everything you can to retire by your early 40s, unless you like your job like Gio say. Only about 20% like their jobs. Also, retirement doesn't have to be black and white. If you have the juice to do a job you're lukewarm on, doing it 2 days a week is a different world than 5.

But get your freedom as soon as possible. I could fuck almost every day at 41, much different in my 50s. Your genes just unravel, you can't foresee how it will feel, and right now there's only limited means to control it.

Your 40s is your last best decade. With that in mind:

1) Save money now. forget bullshit new cars, monthly DirecTV type expenses.
My dad sold mutual funds, his advice to his clients in selling them was "Pay yourself first." Every dollar you piss away in car payments, alcohol, luxury media services, child support for a chick you don't love, keeps you in the office a dollar longer.

That means saving a minimum of IDK 10-15% of your first fucking paycheck where you net over 250 per week until the day in your early 40s hopefully ( which will come so fucking quick you won't believe it) you walk out of an office giving them the middle finger (internally of course. Don't burn bridges, always try to make all relationships win-win.)

2) Invest in safe, DIVIDEND GROWTH stocks with reinvestment of dividends until you have enough money to buy income producing real-estate. Landlording is the second oldest and most reliable profession in the world. Essentially pussy is another variety of land, more perishable and even more necessary to satisfying the primal drive for reproduction.

Also see DIVIDEND ARISTOCRATS
http://us.spindices.com/indices/strategy...ristocrats

If you want to do any high-risk investing, get professionals that aren't selling something on commission. Don't be like the guys a couple years ago who bought gold at 1600 because the dollar "had to" collapse, and are now sitting at 1270, although perhaps a small percentage of your assets should be in disaster type stuff like gold.

Here's a guy that will take your USD 10k minimum and invest in non-directional options for you and watch them all day for 1% a year and 20% of the profits. No business connection, I don't know how well he does but he was a professional trader for years, I wasn't.

http://www.unclebobsmoney.com


3) The biggest things NOT do:

a) let alcohol creep into your life. [/b]I gained 20 lbs being miserable at my job (see above) from drinking in my 40s-50s and I still haven't lost it.

b) Cigarets are completely hopelessly stupid. 1/6 get lung cancer. After all those years saving, the doc could walk in and one test could mean it's all over at 45 anyway.

c) Getting a girl pregnant in a First World country [/b]with totalitarian child support laws. All your savings and early freedom plans are2/3 gone if this happens.

[birdie num num]

Take a public speaking course such as Toastmasters. I wish I had done this in my early 20s.

Such is the fear of public speaking, Jerry Seinfeld joked that most people would rather be inside the casket than being outside giving the eulogy.

If you can learn to manage your fear and speak before a crowd you will be light years ahead of your peers. It will also give a tremendous boost to your confidence and benefit you in your professional life.